Glance upwards. The chances are that the browser you’re reading this news story on is not Microsoft Edge, the difficult second album follow up to Internet Explorer. Despite it being installed as the default web browser on some 600 million computers at the last count, Edge only accounts for 4% of the total desktop browser share, according to StatCounter, lagging behind Internet Explorer (6.9%), Firefox (11.5%) and Google Chrome (67.5%).
Microsoft really, really, really wants you to give Edge a chance. But you already knew that if you’re one of the 79% of people that use Firefox or Chrome, because you’ll have seen Microsoft checking that you’re really really sure you don’t want to try Edge before finally relenting. The tactics, however, seem to have changed, and with the next update to Windows 10 if you use the Microsoft Mail app, you’ll be sampling Edge whether you like it or not.
READ NEXT: How to change your default browser on Windows 10
The release notes of the latest build sent to Microsoft Insiders announces this change: “We will begin testing a change where links clicked on within the Windows Mail app will open in Microsoft Edge, which provides the best, most secure and consistent experience on Windows 10 and across your devices.” This will overrule system browser defaults.
Why? Well, the official answer sounds more like a sales pitch than a logical explanation: “Microsoft Edge enables you to be more productive, organised and creative without sacrificing your battery life or security.”
It’s hard to imagine this decision going down too well. The Windows Mail app may not be used by everyone, but as it offers support for other email providers like Gmail, it does have a pretty broad user base. As this update is just for Insiders at the moment, it’s possible the change will be dropped before it arrives on the majority of desktops.
“As always, we look forward to feedback from our Windows Insider Program community,” the firm said. Well, they asked for it…
Disclaimer: Some pages on this site may include an affiliate link. This does not effect our editorial in any way.
