MICROSOFT EDGE WITH CHROMIUM TO THE TEST: WHAT CHANGES FROM GOOGLE CHROME?

The market for web browsers has been in the hands of Google Chrome for some time now. According to the latest data , the Mountain View company's solution holds 68.50% of the market share. In short, at the beginning of 2020 there seems to be little to be done to undermine Chrome from the top of the most used browsers globally. Still, the struggle to become Google's solution's main rival is tighter than ever. In fact, Microsoft recently decided to completely overhaul the browser pre-installed on Windows 10 and to start from the Chromium open source project , that is, from the same "base" used by the Mountain View company to make Chrome.

This has caught the attention of users, who seem to have appreciated the new Microsoft Edge more than the previous solutions. In fact, the Redmond company's proposal has already reached the second position in the ranking of the most used browsers in the world, obtaining 7.59% of the market share in a few months and surpassing Mozilla Firefox (which stops at 7.19%). 

How to install Microsoft Edge

In the last few days, we have receive several reports from users who have not yet received the new version of the browser, despite being launched on January 15, 2020 . Well, Microsoft has already announced that Chromium-based Edge will come to everyone via Windows Update . However, it was stated early on that the rollout could take a long time and therefore it is normal that you did not receives it via the Windows 10 update.

If you think about it, this makes the result we talked about above even more interesting, since it means that many people have decided to install and use Microsoft Edge of their own volition. In short, in reality the "push" that can derive from the pre-installation on Windows 10 is far from over and the browser could earn other important percentage points in terms of market share by the end of 2020.

In any case, if you want to speed up the process and try Microsoft Edge immediately, you just need to connect to the official Microsoft website and press first on the " Download " and then on the " Accept and Download ". After that, once the download is complete, you will need to open the setup file, wait for the additional files to be downloaded and complete the installation.

Note the fact that Microsoft Edge based on Chromium directly replaces the previous version of the browser , so at the bottom left, in the taskbar, you should immediately see the new icon to access the program.

What changes from Google Chrome?

Starting Edge for the first time, users who are used to using Google Chrome will immediately find themselves at home. At the top left there are the classic buttons to go back / forward and reload the page. The only differences is the absence of the icon that leads to the Home (in Chrome it is usually used to return to the Google home page). At the top right, something changes, but not too much: there is the icon to manage the favorites, the one related to the account (which is used to synchronize data between the various devices owned by the user) and the icon to log in to the various options.

Again, the changes are not many: there are all the classic features, from " Print " to " Find on page": the only real differences are found in the tabs called" Apps "and" Extensions ". Well, the former, also supported by Chrome (but listed differently), are none other than PWAs (Progressive Web Apps) . For whom did not know, these are applications that behave exactly like web pages. We are therefore talking about software that can be installed, both on desktop and mobile, and started via the browser.

To give you a concrete examples, if you often read these pages and want to install the Everyeye Tech PWA, just open our site from Microsoft Edge, press the three dots icon at the top right, hover the mouse cursor over the item "App" and select "Install Everyeye Tech" (on Chrome there is only the latter option).

The first tangible change for users who usually use Chrome comes in extensions instead. In fact, as you have probably already guessed, Microsoft Edge cannot, at least by default, use the Chrome Web Store, but must rely on the Microsoft Store. Well, the section dedicated to Edge add-ons is declared as still in Beta by the same company from Redmond and therefore do not expect the same amount of extensions available for Chrome.

As you can see by consulting the complete list published on the official website, there is still a long ways to go to reach the competition and there is no shortage of extensions of dubious origin / usefulness. Don't get us wrong, some popular software can be found, such as the Avast extension, but there are also several important shortcomings (think, for example, of BigG's services, such as the Google Hangouts extension). In any case, once an extension is installed, it appears at the top right and is manageable in a similar way to what happens on Chrome.

There is actually a way to take advantage of Chrome Web Store extensions on Microsoft Edge. In fact, going to the page relating to extensions, at the bottom left, a bit "hidden", there is an option called "Allow extensions from other archives". By enabling the latter, the browser will warn that third-party extensions are not verified by the Redmond company and that these software can cause performance problems.

Despite this, the option allows you to tap into the Chrome store. In fact, by connecting to the official website of the latter , Edge warns the user that, once this setting is enabled, it is possible to install the various extensions by pressing the "Add to Chrome" item.

If you are thinking that the real differences are by going to the options panel, in reality this is not the case. In fact, there are all the main options, from the update screen to the one related to the appearance (with a lot of possibility to set the dark theme ), passing through the page settings to be opened at startup and the privacy options. Obviously, there are several differences, from the lack of integration, at the browser level, with the Google account (here we use the Microsoft one) to the different way of managing the various settings.

However, the "base" is clearly the same, so much so that by typing, for example, "edge: // flags", geeks can access almost the same experimental features as Chrome. For example, you can "force" Dark Mode on search pages by enabling the "Force Dark Mode for Web Contents" option. Usually these features have major bugs, but this example allows us to better understand how similar Edge and Chrome are.

An important difference is the screen that appears when you open a new tab , as Microsoft is trying to use it to push its search engine, or Bing. The Redmond company has made this page more "lively" than its direct rival, by implementing a default background and interesting tabs. In particular, at the top there are the classic search bar and the most visited sites, while at the bottom there is information on the weather and a selection of news made through the Microsoft News service. The latter are divided according to the topic and can be customized according to your interests. Do not miss the ability to change the layout of the page.

 

In short, the Redmond company has done a good job, even if it is a matter of taste and it is clear that the presence of the Bing search engine may not be well seen by everyone. If you're wondering, the default search engine can be changed for the URL bar, but not on the page that appears when opening a new tab. Of course, just search through the URL bar and not through the one in the center of the page, but you have to get used to it.

The real differences between Chrome and Edge

If in terms of functionality it changes so little and there are also limitations (such as those relating to extensions, even if "bypassable", as we have seen), why do some users decide to use Edge instead of Chrome? Well, usually those who use Microsoft's solution make it a question of performance. In fact, several performance-related tests have shown that the final results are similar and that many users probably won't even notice the differences. It must be said that determining which browser is "faster" is very complex, given that there are myriads of variables involved and users often have conflicting experiences.

What is objective, however, is that Edge uses less RAM than Chromein many contexts. We tried to do a very simple test: open the same five pages on Chrome and Edge, without logging in and without any kind of extension. Well, in our test we noticed a consumption of 550MB of RAM with Chrome, while the Edge stopped at around 350MB. In short, according to this single test, the difference between the two browsers would be about 35%.

Obviously, relying only on such a test would be somewhat limiting, but we have noticed, checking the tests carried out by users, that the difference usually goes from 20% upwards. In short, Microsoft's solution can undoubtedly have advantages, especially for those who want to take advantage of the possibilities offered by the Chromium engine but have an outdated computer.

At the moment, however, it is difficult to think that those who have machines with a high amount of RAM decide to abandon Chrome.

Summing up, Microsoft still has a long way to go to catch up with the competition, but it must be said that the Redmond company has made great strides in the last period. It's hard to forget Internet Explorer, which has now become synonymous with "slowness". The new path of Edge instead takes the right path, despite being faced with several problems. However, the latter are normal, as we are at an early stage of the project.

Thinking that Microsoft will succeed in ousting Google Chrome overnight is utopia, but by working on these foundations and exploiting the spread of Windows 10, the Redmond company could certainly achieve interesting results.. The second place in terms of market share is only a starting point. In short, we would like to say that Microsoft is finally getting back on track also in the browser field and we can't wait to find out whether or not it will be able to worry the Mountain View company properly over the next few years.

 

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