A mysterious Samsung Internet app is taken off the Microsoft Store - with no clues as to why it was there in the first place

 Samsung Internet Browser dev application on Smartphone screen.
(Image credit: bangoland / Shutterstock)

Samsung Internet is a Chromium-based browser, similar to Edge and Google Chrome, and it’s been in the public eye recently due to an unusual listing on the Microsoft Store for a Windows version of the Android browser. 

However, MSPoweruser reports that as of today January 15, 2024 the app is no longer listed or accessible on the Microsoft Store. Samsung and Microsoft are yet to release any official statements regarding the peculiar situation. 

While it is quite odd to see Samsung Internet on the Microsoft Store, there are a few possible explanations as to what could have happened. Since there was no announcement before the app became available on the store, its appearance back in November 2023 could have been an unintentional release. MSPoweruser suggests that as the app was only available in untranslated Korean it could have been released before it was ready. 

What's going on?

It could also be possible that this was part of a more specific regional release - hence the Korean only option - which may have made its way outside of the specified region. 

The exact reason the app has now disappeared is still unclear, though it leans towards our suspicion that it may have been an accidental release. According to Sammobile, who had some time with the app before it was removed, it was missing quite a few key features you’d expect to find in a regular browser and was noticeably laggy most of the time it was in use. 

We’ll keep you updated if the mysterious app makes its way back to the Microsoft Store anytime soon, or if Samsung has anything to say about it. A Windows 11 version that comes in other languages and isn’t missing features could be a popular choice for users who already have Samsung smartphones, and want to continue using the same browser on their laptops or PCs.

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Muskaan Saxena
Computing Staff Writer

Muskaan is TechRadar’s UK-based Computing writer. She has always been a passionate writer and has had her creative work published in several literary journals and magazines. Her debut into the writing world was a poem published in The Times of Zambia, on the subject of sunflowers and the insignificance of human existence in comparison. Growing up in Zambia, Muskaan was fascinated with technology, especially computers, and she's joined TechRadar to write about the latest GPUs, laptops and recently anything AI related. If you've got questions, moral concerns or just an interest in anything ChatGPT or general AI, you're in the right place. Muskaan also somehow managed to install a game on her work MacBook's Touch Bar, without the IT department finding out (yet).

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