Arch Linux sucks. Its the default OS on the Pinephone which I use as a backup smartphone (main smartphone is Android). I'm used to running Debian, which is rock stable. Arch Linux? I get dependency issues when I'm running the software update installer. Not once or twice, all bloody time. I mean, WTF? How would anyone want such in production???
NixOS is more sane because it has roll backs, and declarative configuration is like a gigantic black hole eating everything which was known before it.
To be fair, that's Arch Linux ARM, which is technically a separate project. The pinephone arch linux arm repositories aren't even maintained by the official project.
That said, I've had no such issues running Arch on my pinephone.
I think its Manjaro by default but that's based on Arch. It follow exactly the same principles.
I've had the same problem on Arch Linux on my desktop. To be fair, I was using AUR, but without that there's far less software (less than Ubuntu I suppose). So what I did was trying out Arch Linux on a separate NVMe during some free time, learning some specific tools (it also has NixOS installed on another partition for the same purpose). I come back after a while, want to update my OS first because that is the first thing I do when I use any computer. What ya know? Boom, dependency issues. I really do not want to deal with that before I can use a tool. And every time I bring this up I get these replies "I never have issues with Arch". Sure thing, I must be special.
Look, I ran Debian Testing and Unstable for a while before Arch was cool (1999 - 2003 era). That way I could run Linux with tools such as a decent package manager, while running recent software. But this was a different time, and not mission critical computers.
pacman is pretty amazing package manager - I would be curious to know more about your dependency issues.
I suppose it could have been a temporary bug in Manjaro (which started as an Arch derivative but turned into a separate distro with links to Arch - the repositories are different).
I would recommend following the wiki and installing Arch Linux (I know, no UI) over Manjaro to have a true Arch experience.
That said, AUR is the reason I use arch linux, because there are scripts to install pretty much anything in a frictionless way.
When installing esoteric stuff the dpkg / apt repositories dance gets old pretty quickly on debian derivates. Often I would just install things on the system instead of creating my own deb. On Arch Linux I can often find a package in AUR (or quickly write a PKGBUILD).
Upgrading the system every few months and breaking a lot of things all at once (making a reinstall the easiest option) is also not very appealing in my book.
I prefer the rolling release model which gives me the latest update immediately and let me fix things once at a time.
That said, anyone has its own preferences, no need to bad mouth distros.
NixOS is more sane because it has roll backs, and declarative configuration is like a gigantic black hole eating everything which was known before it.