Microsoft’s revamped Edge browser has only been available for a few months, but it’s already putting pressure on Google’s market-leading Chrome. Now Microsoft has just issued a bold strike to Chrome with a set of cool and timely new features in Edge 83.
Launched on May 22 and rolling out gradually, Edge 83 will be available initially for a small number of users to evaluate their response so Microsoft can iron out any bugs and issues, according to tech site Bleeping Computer.
So what’s coming in this latest Microsoft Edge update?
Chrome-beating Microsoft Edge features you’ll want to try now
Even as countries exit lockdown during the COVID-19 crisis, many users are now working from home. This makes features such as the ability to separate your profiles between work and personal integral.
One of the new features in Edge 83, “Automatic Profile Switching” is able to detect when you are navigating to a site authenticated with a work account while in your personal profile and switch without you having to do anything.
Meanwhile, an update to a feature called SmartScreen makes you safer as you browse by stopping you from visiting insecure websites or downloading malicious files. Among the other cool updates, the Collections feature is improving—you can use it to drag and drop items to the collection without opening it—and the ability to Sync your extensions has been added.
How to get the new Microsoft Edge features now
If you can’t wait for the update, Bleeping Computer includes instructions for how to get Edge 83 now.
First, go to Microsoft Edge’s enterprise page and Select Stable 83 under Channel/version > Edge 83.0.478.37 > Select the platform > Download.Google Chrome v Edge
Microsoft Edge is certainly ramping up on the features front as it goes head-to-head with Chrome. In another move that brings its browser on a par with Chrome, Microsoft recently confirmed it would add a feature that will hide annoying notification pop ups that appear on some websites.
Privacy and security are a new battleground for browser-makers, and Google has just dropped a bunch of new features to try and starve off attempts to steal its market share.
In some ways, the two browsers are similar: If you are already an Edge user, you’ll know it’s based on the same Chromium browser engine as Google Chrome. Both Edge and Chrome releases have been delayed during COVID-19—and both skipped version 82 altogether to go straight to 83.
These new features are pretty cool—and they are what people need right now—so if you’re looking for a Google Chrome alternative, why not give Edge a try.
I’m a freelance cybersecurity journalist with over a decade’s experience writing news, reviews and features. I report and analyze breaking cybersecurity and privacy stories with a particular interest in cyber warfare, application security and data misuse. Contact me at kate.oflaherty@techjournalist.co.uk
Source: https://www.forbes.com
