Microsoft has once again rebooted its desktop web browser, replacing its Edge browser with a new version that borrows a lot from Google Chrome. The new Microsoft Edge is now available for manual download on Windows 10, Windows 8, Windows 7, and MacOS, and it will automatically roll out to PCs in stages over the coming months.
Because the new Edge uses Chromium—the same open-source code that powers Chrome—its performance and features are similar to Google’s web browser. It even allows users to install extensions from the Chrome Web Store. Still, Edge offers some additional features that make it worth considering over Chrome: it has built-in tracking prevention, so you can block third-party trackers (something Google now plans to do over the next two years), and you can stream in 4K with supported services such as Netflix. There’s also a neat “Read Aloud” feature that translates text to speech on any web page.
Microsoft may still have a tough time pulling people away from Chrome, which accounts for two thirds of all desktop browser market share according to NetMarketShare, especially when other browsers like Brave and Firefox have an even bigger privacy focus. But as people buy new PCs, perhaps they’ll be less repulsed with the new version of Edge than they were with the old version.
To download the new Microsoft Edge, visit this link.
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