The revamped Edge browser will be delivered to Windows 10 users automatically via Windows Update when it’s officially released on January 15, 2020, Microsoft has confirmed, along with some further details about how the browser will be maintained.
Chromium-based Edge will be deployed by Windows Update to every PC which is running Windows 10 version 1709 (Fall Creators Update, released late 2017) or newer.
- I’m sick of Chrome eating all my RAM – it's time to ditch it...
- Microsoft Edge comes with a dark mode
- We’ve picked out the best web browsers of 2019
As the software giant has already made clear, Edge won’t be tied into Windows 10’s biannual updates for new features, but instead these will be delivered on a rolling basis.
Microsoft clarified: “Feature updates will be released on a 6-week cycle (approximately.) Security and compatibility updates will be shipped as needed.”
And of course this allows Microsoft to be more responsive with maintaining and developing the browser, rather than making folks wait for twice yearly splurges of feature updates.
Seamless succession
The new Edge will seamlessly and completely replace the old version, with all relevant pins, tiles, and shortcuts automatically updated for the fresh version of the browser.
Microsoft further observed: “Most protocols that Microsoft Edge handles by default will be migrated to the next version of Microsoft Edge.”
There are couple of other points worth noting, including that a Blocker Toolkit will be made available to firms who want to block the automatic deployment of the new Edge for whatever reason (and apparently this will be usable on a Windows 10 Home system, by an admin).
Furthermore, Microsoft announced that the Edge Addons store has been opened up so developers can submit their wares, and the firm noted that most existing extensions produced for Chromium should work straight off the bat in the new Edge browser, with no changes needed.
This wide support for extensions is certainly going to be part of the attraction of the new browser, compared to the limited availability of add-ons for the original Edge (which was quite a sticking point).
- Surf the web on one of our best laptops of 2019
Via ZDNet
