Microsoft has been steadily marching towards a full implementation of their chromium based browser upgrade to Microsoft Edge. It seems they have crossed a big line in the sand with the improved browser now being pushed to certain builds of Windows 10.
What does this mean for you? If you’re on Windows, and you hadn’t already downloaded the Edge browser update then chances are your previous Edge browser will be updated to the new Chromium based version. If you’re on a corporate managed device the update may be delayed or stopped altogether depending on your organisation’s policies.
While some bemoan Microsoft moving to the Chromium engine for their browser as it puts more power in the Chromium project and as a result Google for setting web standards. From our perspective though it’s a great improvement in the usability and extensibility of Windows default browser.
With Microsoft clearly chasing cloud and service as their primary business focus, it’s easy to see how Microsoft’s decision to stop developing their own independent browser technology and start contributing to and using Chromium just makes good business sense.
While we understand the reservations of centralising more of the web under one umbrella, the Chromium project is at least open source, and many of the current browsers in use are in fact forks of that code set.
