Back in December, we wrote a blog about a new version of Microsoft's unloved "Edge" browser being released to the wider world imminently. It seems that there are initial signs that this relaunch has been at least partially successful, as the browser has overtaken Mozilla's Firefox to become the second most popular browser according to recent statistics.
In the (relatively) ancient past when monitors were big square boxes that took up half the desk and weighed at least 10 times more than they do now, Microsoft ruled the browser waves with their all conquering Internet Explorer. However, that reign was ended by Google and their Chrome browser. In part, this was because it was genuinely better browser, but Google arguably used some underhand tactics to build the initial userbase by bundling Chrome in with many other apps and installing it as the default browser for the machine.
Regardless of how we got here, Google is now monopolising the browser market in the same way Microsoft used to. So much so that Microsoft have given up with their own browser "engine". The revamped Edge browser uses Google's Chrome engine at its core and therefore shares (and will continue to share) many similarities with it now.
NetMarketShare have provided data indicating that Microsoft Edge usage now accounts for 7.59% of the market share. Firefox stands at 7.19%, while Chrome is still way out in the lead with 68.50%.
Microsoft hasn't actually actively pushed this new version on to users' machines yet, although it is adding nudges into the operating system to encourage people to grab the new version. Having used it ourselves, we can't see any reason to stick with the old version of Edge, so would encourage people to take the plunge and install the new one, even if only to have it available as a backup browser.