Is Microsoft Edge Good?
Dear Lifehacker, I heard that Microsoft is releasing a new browser with Windows 10. What’s new? Should I use it instead of Chrome or Firefox? Or is it just Internet Explorer with a new livery?
Regards Microsoft Edge of Tomorrow
Dear Tom Cruise! The good news is that this browser is not Internet Explorer. While the default Windows standard has gotten better over the years , Microsoft has finally ditched it . At Microsoft’s Build event last week, the company announced that Microsoft Edge will ship with Windows 10 and replace Internet Explorer forever.
During development, the browser was called Project Spartan . You can try it now if you are running Windows 10 preview . Of course, the real question is, can it replace your existing browser? Here’s what we think after playing with it. Keep in mind, of course, that this is not a beta release yet and could be improved before launch.
Edge includes many useful features out of the box
Microsoft announced that Edge will have extension support out of the box, and is even trying to make it easy for developers to port their extensions. However, the company is also not waiting for other services to make their browser useful. Here are just a few things Edge already does:
- Cortana is built into it to get quick replies: Google has done some pretty nifty things by adding quick replies and Google Now-like features to search, but nothing beats a fully integrated assistant. In Edge, you can highlight text and right-click to instantly get information, including word definitions, address maps, or information about famous people. Unlike Google search, you can get this information without leaving the page or opening a new tab.
- Annotations and Reading Lists eliminate the need for some extensions: Edge lets you save screenshots of web pages and write notes on them. It also includes a Reading List feature that lets you save articles for future reference. Chrome or Firefox can do this with extensions, but with Edge it’s already built in. If you’re a dedicated Evernote or Pocket, this won’t matter much to you. If you just want to save an article from time to time without signing up for another service, this is the way to go.
- Reading Mode takes the bullshit out of the articles: it gets the rage when you try to read the article and giant banner ads push text down, videos fly around the page, or some scam ad starts making noise. Nobody wants or likes this nonsense. While bookmarklets that can remove everything but text have been around for a while, this is another thing the browser just does.
Most of the time, browsers don’t have to do a lot, and extensions take care of a lot of the things you want to add. However, the more crap you add to your browser, the more it slows down (we’ll talk about that later). Edge doesn’t add a ton of crap, but what it does is helpful.
This is not Internet Explorer
One of the longest-standing criticisms of Internet Explorer is that it lacks basic compatibility with web standards and other browsers. In other words, pages that render well in Chrome, Firefox, and Safari may still not work in Internet Explorer because they just have to be different. Microsoft Edge is not in this boat.
One of the reasons IE causes so many problems is that it has historically been the worst for HTML5 compatibility. Even the most recent version of Internet Explorer is ranked 348 out of 555 in this HTML5 compatibility test. In comparison, Chrome got 523 and Firefox 444. Edge is currently ranked 390, which is actually higher than it was. … even just a month ago .
This score could be better, but it also means that Microsoft is deliberately trying to make compatibility a priority. This means that websites should not display incorrectly as often, and developers should not go into extra work to get them to work on the Microsoft platform.
It’s still pretty bare bones, but it’s not that bad
Some features are missing from Edge at the moment. It doesn’t seem to have pinned tabs, incognito mode, or some other niceties that we love about our browsers. Of course, it’s hard to be too critical now. The existing beta doesn’t even have the name Edge yet. Obviously, this is not all.
However, the fact that it is incomplete also means that it is not bloated yet. By comparison, Chrome is an infamous resource-intensive resource . Just like Firefox was before it . Perhaps this is because we rely on them so much, but browsers have a habit of spiraling out of control with their use of resources.
For now, the comparative lack of features and the bulk of the Edge make it quite thin. It may not replace the power user toolbox, but it’s a great lightweight alternative. Whether you have a low power laptop or an old computer that you use at home, Edge might be just what you need. Only the future knows if this will remain so, but now much less bells and whistles are needed.
Of course, this all comes down to using an unfinished product preview that hasn’t even completed its name change yet. If you’re an avid Chrome or Firefox user with half a dozen extensions, you probably won’t be seduced right away. But so far it looks promising. Microsoft is working hard to add really useful functionality to a browser that gets rid of the worst parts and starts over on a solid foundation.
Regards, Lifehacker