Microsoft teases Chromium-based Edge browser for macOS
At the start of its Build developer conference on Monday, Microsoft offered a fleeting glimpse at the macOS version of Edge, a browser once exclusive to Windows 10.
The first Dev- and Canary-channel builds are coming "soon," Microsoft said in a blog post. No narrower dates are available, whether for early or finished software.
Microsoft is migrating Edge as a whole over to Chromium, an open-source platform best known for undergirding Google Chrome. That should make Edge easier to develop for, including by third parties.
While Edge is integrated into Windows 10, it controls just 4.49 percent of the desktop browser market, according to NetMarketShare data. Chrome is far and away the leader at 65.81 percent. Even Internet Explorer, Edge's predecessor, enjoys a better share at 9.52 percent. Apple's Mac-only Safari is at 3.69.
Some potential features in Edge for Mac include a new privacy dashboard with per-site customization, and Collections, which will let people gather related content for later sharing, browsing, or publishing to apps like Word and Excel. Neither feature has been set in stone for macOS or even Windows.
Edge already has a presence on iPhones and iPads.
The first Dev- and Canary-channel builds are coming "soon," Microsoft said in a blog post. No narrower dates are available, whether for early or finished software.
Microsoft is migrating Edge as a whole over to Chromium, an open-source platform best known for undergirding Google Chrome. That should make Edge easier to develop for, including by third parties.
While Edge is integrated into Windows 10, it controls just 4.49 percent of the desktop browser market, according to NetMarketShare data. Chrome is far and away the leader at 65.81 percent. Even Internet Explorer, Edge's predecessor, enjoys a better share at 9.52 percent. Apple's Mac-only Safari is at 3.69.
Some potential features in Edge for Mac include a new privacy dashboard with per-site customization, and Collections, which will let people gather related content for later sharing, browsing, or publishing to apps like Word and Excel. Neither feature has been set in stone for macOS or even Windows.
Edge already has a presence on iPhones and iPads.
Comments
Turnabout is fair play.
I'm on dark mode on Mojave right now, but take this site for example.
I'm using Safari right now, but the background of the forum page is white. I should be able to override that and turn this page into dark mode, to blend in with my overall dark mode which I'm using on Movaje. I saw that there is some sort of third party paid app which claims to do this on the App Store, but it should be built into Safari.
As for why Microsoft is essentially repackaging Chrome for Mac, my guess is that they have some cloud services which use Microsoft-proprietary browser extensions/technology which they need to make available to Mac users.
In my own case, I use Firefox on a Mac because I got used to Firefox on a Windows computer when Firefox was introduced as so much better than the then reigning king of browsers, Internet explorer. And I followed each new iterations of Firefox, each one promising to be better than the preceding version and/or other alternative browsers.
Nowadays, I use Safari only on my iPad, mostly, I suspect, because it was the only browser allowed on the iPad for a long time and, also, because I don't browse the internet very often on the iPad as I very much prefer the 27 inch display and the keyboard of the iMac. Naturally, I tried Firefox when it was first made available on the iPad. As it was a first attempt to introduce Firefox on the iPad, the first version failed to convince me that I should use Firefox instead of the more mature Safari browser.
Most people get used to a browser and keep using it, no matter what, because it meets their needs and it has a familiar interface.
I read that the Opera browser is really superior to its competitors and that it is the prevailing browser in some countries of Europe. Unfortunately, as I got used to Firefox, I didn't really try Opera for any great length of time.
It's a good thing that there is a choice of browsers as competition forces browser programmers to always improve their browser, if only to keep up with the competition. Ultimately, everyone benefits from greater competition and the continuous improvement of each browser.
We already had the movie "The Edge of Tomorrow" now we have the Edge of stupid.
1. Chromium isn't Chrome. It's the core of Chrome with the Google spyware taken out.
2. Edge doesn't have a low share on Windows because its a bad browser -- it's not. It's not the finest browser in the world, either. It falls very squarely in the middle. The reason it has a low share is because towards the end of IE quite some years ago, every Windows fanboy/tech was recommending anything but IE because IE was horrible, and that advice was taken. People like FF and (stupidly) Chrome, so Edge -- despite being pretty similar -- has been ignored.
3. As noted by Ouragan above, if you're using Edge elsewhere ... you may like having it on the Mac. Again, it's not bad at all, and isn't disguised spyware like Chrome. Whatever alternate browser you prefer, you should always have a second one around for troubleshooting Safari -- though Safari in recent years has been a terrific experience for me, fast and comfortable and just doesn't have the problems with compatibility that once plagued it. Brave is my alternate browser. Are FF and Chrome better? FF is a fine browser, but I grew tired of updating it constantly (are they up to version 100 yet?).
4. If you are on a site that says it's best compatible with IE, run the other way. They either haven't updated it in a decade, or it's a warren of malware (or both).
While I don't have any issues with Safari on iOS. It works just fine in general. It's not the best working between Windows and iOS. Being able to use Chrome on both, or Edge on both is more useful. Should be allowed to set the default on whatever browser we want. It's these small things that make a huge difference.
Edge on the Mac? Why not. maybe you use Windows, iOS and Mac. Now you have a single browser that works for all three. With your bookmarks and everything in all 3. Used to using 1 browser for all systems.