Microsoft Edge Has One Big Disadvantage In The Browser Wars

Microsoft Edge, the new browser Microsoft is rolling out for Windows 10, has generally been well-received. But there’s a simple reason why it will take a long time before it really competes with its browser rivals.

As Gartner analysts David Mitchell Smith and Michael A Silver highlight in a recent paper, the big restriction on uptake of Edge will be the fact that initially it will purely be a Windows 10 offering:

Edge requires the Windows 10 operating system, so it doesn’t support the most popular operating systems today, Windows 7, 8, Android and iOS. (We do expect that Microsoft’s recent multiplatform focus means that it will make Edge available for Android and iOS, but it has not stated that it will.) We don’t expect the majority of enterprises to implement widespread upgrades to Windows 10 until 2017, so Edge will not be a major factor for most enterprises until then.

Individuals will receive a free upgrade to Windows 10 from Windows 7 and Windows 8, so they’ll have the option of using Edge (or Chrome or Firefox or Opera or even IE). But corporates are likely to take a much more measured approach to upgrading, and that means Edge won’t even be an option.


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