Microsoft’s Answer To Google Chrome Has Landed


Microsoft has finally launched its latest browser, Edge Chromium, and it’s based on Google’s open source software. Here’s what you need to know and whether it’s worth testing out.

[referenced url=”https://www.lifehacker.com.au/2020/01/rip-internet-explorer-1995-2020/” thumb=”https://www.lifehacker.com.au/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2020/01/Internet-Explorer-2-410×231.jpg” title=”RIP Internet Explorer (1995-2020)” excerpt=”Today, Microsoft officially launched its new browser, Edge Chromium, into the wild. This marks the final nail in Internet Explorer’s coffin, with the last vestiges of IE’s Trident engine no longer in use.”]

Microsoft kicked it off with Internet Explorer when it became the number browser for the first decade or so after the internet’s invention. But since it was released, much of the world has shunned Internet Explorer, which was replaced by Microsoft Edge in 2015, when other browsers like Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox came around offering a faster and better user experience.

It seems the company has gotten the message after Edge failed to capture the users it probably hoped to. It’s instead taken on the old adage — if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em — and has launched Edge Chromium using Google’s open source software. As of 16 January, the new browser has been released into the wild giving users who want the ease and familiarity of Chrome with the features Microsoft offers.

How do I download it?

Head to Microsoft’s Edge landing page and hit that download button for your compatible device. Interestingly, despite Microsoft putting Windows 7 out of commission just days earlier, it’s offering downloads for the old operating system though it’s not advisable due to the lack of security and technical support.

Is it worth trying out?

Yes, I have volunteered to download the new Edge browser as a public service. I’m personally a hater of Internet Explorer and have successfully avoided using Edge since I made the switch to Firefox and Chrome many years ago. With the short play around I’ve had, on the surface level, it’s just a Google Chrome browser with a Microsoft skin, which makes sense. It’s light and more responsive than the former Edge but that’s in part due to me not yet loading much into it. How it will fare if I start using it as my primary browser remains to be tested.

But that’s just my quick run of the browser. Since it’s free, there’s no harm in trying it for yourself if you’re sick of Google or Mozilla and want to give another major browser a chance. If you give it a whirl yourself, let us know what you think in the comments.

[referenced url=”https://www.lifehacker.com.au/2019/12/microsoft-edge-could-actually-be-worth-using-soon/” thumb=”https://www.lifehacker.com.au/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2015/07/Edge-410×231.jpg” title=”Microsoft’s Edge Browser Just Became A Dark Horse” excerpt=”Long has Microsoft Edge – and it’s discontinued sibling Internet Explorer – been the bane of the internet browsing world. But a new version might just give it the edge it’s always needed and it’s using Google to make it happen.”]

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