Edge has become really GOOD in the Creators Update

[xankazo]

I recently updated to the Creators Update Insiders Preview and my biggest surprise is how good Edge has become. The old quirkiness and micro-stutters that plagued Edge (at least in my experience) are totally gone. The new additions are really helpful too. Setting tabs aside is a clean way to save your recent history. Tabs preview is very neat and the Reader Mode is more powerful. It also has better pdf support. These are things that make it better than the other browsers I use (Chrome, Firefox, Opera), and now I'm using it as my daily driver. 

 

Great work Edge devs. 

[George P Global Moderator]

I just wish post-creators update they move to updating it faster, otherwise most people will be stuck with this version till they get redstone 3 in, probably Oct or November.   They really need to push out updates through the store, at least for the front-end browser itself (edge), while they can keep the core engine, that UWP and other things need (edgeHTML) to Windows builds.

 

I mean heck, in their own blog posts at the start the edge team talked about why they split it into two parts, edge and edgehtml, and how it allowed them to update it faster etc, yet they don't do so.

[xankazo]

I totally agree. Edge can no longer afford to be limited to updates only through build releases. All other browsers receive major updates monthly and small updates and patches even more frequently. UWP gotta show some teeth and prove what it's capable of. 

[Circaflex]

I agree, it is definitely better and becoming faster and faster IMO with each update. As others have pointed out, I wish it would have updates pushed through the store rather than a new Windows build. Edge still seems to choke with multiple media rich tabs open; but I am using it more and more.

[Marujan]

EDGE browser more faster than the Firefox

[Tidosho]

Haha, how much did Microsoft pay you guys?!? I'll have to start investing in review revenue

[Circaflex]

11 minutes ago, Tidosho said:

Haha, how much did Microsoft pay you guys?!? I'll have to start investing in review revenue

No.

[adrynalyne]

45 minutes ago, Circaflex said:

No.

Don't feed them. 

[+mram Subscriber²]

It still seriously lacks in all areas involving customization.  

It's updates are horrifically slow (every build update, so every 15-18 months).

It did not deliver on a "Windows Store" app so it's still tied to OS updates.

 

Customization, customization, customization.

 

If I can't get it past my wifes "fugly" test, there's no point that the engine runs 0.2s faster.  Chrome can be slow as anything (it's not - just saying!), but if it's pretty and stable, it's great.

 

A great example of "the old Microsoft" shows in Edge:  "Make a Web note" and "Share" buttons.  I never, ever, ever use them.  Ever.  Nor do a ton of people I work with.  Seriously.  Why can't I disable the buttons?  It's a HUGE OVERSIZED bar for address entry, forward/backward buttons, etc, and has favorites, reading list, options, etc ... a bunch of buttons already.  Why oh why can't I remove buttons I personally never use?  (The "old microsoft" would insist I'm just doing it wrong.  I disagree.  I do it the way I damn well want to.  And I don't need a mandatory 5 buttons in my upper right corner for 3 things I never ever use, especially when they're oversized and glaring in the single greatest-used app I have on my screen: the browser)

 

Customization, customization, customization, fugly.

 

Ergo, people won't use it.  It doesn't matter how much better its engine might be.  I've said it before:  you can wrap a pinto frame on a porche engine and people will not care about the engine.  That's not what they see.  Appearance matters.

 

Not to mention that any change in this regard has to be crowdsourced, and I've submitted this multiple times, and it never gets the votes, mostly because people never see the options.  Crowdsourcing non-bug advancements in software is ridiculous.  

 

Edge is effectively dead because of that.

 

Microsoft, if you ever read these forums, Edge might be "da bomb" but if it can't be more nimble and flexible and update at a faster release cadence, it will never grow.

[Jazmac]

It has been good for the last few builds.  The only time I remember its Edge is when I'm on Windows Central trying to leave comments in their blogs. It simply doesn't work on their blog posts.  But here and everywhere its, it's a beautiful thing.

[margrave]

I've also got a nice bridge I'd like to sell ya. Great spot too.

[spaceelf]

I loved what I saw in the latest update builds before I built a new comp and was avoiding anything beyond Release Preview.   I still play web games that hate Edge sadly.

[Boo Berry]

Is there an actual favorites manager yet? Can you turn off the smooth scrolling?

[George P Global Moderator]

Haters gonna hate.

[cork1958]

On 3/23/2017 at 1:04 PM, mram said:

 Chrome can be slow as anything (it's not - just saying!), but if it's pretty and stable, it's great.

That's all it takes for Chrome to be the better browser?! No wonder it's as popular as it is. Glad I don't base my decisions on just those! And fwiw, Chrome is slow as anything too!

 

Was just working on a couple Windows 10 machines that got updated with the Creators Update. Edge is definitely notably better then previously.

[spaceelf]

I've never seen Chrome slow.  Wonder if you have to load it with plugins for that to happen.

 

Edge in the Creators Update is a hell of an improvement (even from earlier Creators Update builds) now that I'm back.  I'd love to use it full time, but it's still not 100% perfect for my usage.

[adrynalyne]

1 minute ago, LostCat said:

I've never seen Chrome slow.  Wonder if you hav to load it with plugins for that to happen.

 

Edge in the Creators Update is a hell of an improvement (even from earlier Creators Update builds) now that I'm back.  I'd love to use it full time, but it's still not 100% perfect for my usage.

Some pop up blockers slow the eff out of it. 

[George P Global Moderator]

People talk about edge and customization, I don't get what more you guys want other than changing the color and the option to move buttons around, most people don't bother with changing the way the bars are and what they show.   I've also never been a fan of that whole sidebar thing that opera and Vivaldi use, waste of space IMO.

 

Better bookmark management and updates to the settings so you have more control, plus tweaks to history and I'm good to go.  The things I think they should add aren't major overall but nice to have anyways.

[Mando]

On 3/22/2017 at 10:24 PM, Circaflex said:

I agree, it is definitely better and becoming faster and faster IMO with each update. As others have pointed out, I wish it would have updates pushed through the store rather than a new Windows build. Edge still seems to choke with multiple media rich tabs open; but I am using it more and more.

really really really? I suppose i could give it another shot  laptops installing 15063 atm, gamesbox can wait till 5th.

[Quillz]

I gave Edge another look and right away, I found switching between tabs (Ctrl+tab) is slower than in Chrome. And while Edge does have extensions, it's still not enough to make me want to switch over for good. Every time I think I can, I always remember there is some Chrome extension I'm using that has no Edge equivalent.

 

On the plus side, I found the font rendering better than in Chrome. And the stock design seems to be a bit less intrusive than Chrome. But it's still not as flexible as Chrome.

[oldtimefighter]

So no "old quirkiness and micro-stutters" now huh? What about all the reports of it just out right crashing for some people with the Redstone 2 update?

 

Edge has a long way to go for me...

 

1.) Lack of extensions.

2.) Ridiculous UI with lack of customization.

3.) No cross-platform support so I can't sync my bookmarks, passwords, etc. with my other devices. It's 2017 and mobile is a thing now.

4.) It not being open source is a mark against for me.

 

Seriously, it's like a Mickey Mouse browser and I can't even consider Edge as a daily driver or even have a reason to use it once in while. Firefox and Chrome have me covered.

Edited May 7, 2017 by oldtimefighter

[+mram Subscriber²]

On 4/1/2017 at 1:32 AM, George P said:

People talk about edge and customization, I don't get what more you guys want other than changing the color and the option to move buttons around, most people don't bother with changing the way the bars are and what they show.   I've also never been a fan of that whole sidebar thing that opera and Vivaldi use, waste of space IMO.

 

Better bookmark management and updates to the settings so you have more control, plus tweaks to history and I'm good to go.  The things I think they should add aren't major overall but nice to have anyways.

Sorry for late response, but see the below for a comparison.

 

 

Some of us just want to see the icons we actually use...

In Chrome, I have favorites, Lastpass, RSS, and options.

In Edge, I have reading view, add to favorites, hub, web note, share, lastpass, options.

 

In edge, I also cannot resize the buttons, so they are larger to accommodate the potential of tablet mode.  I give edge a little bit of a negative mark for this because I like that it at least is touch-friendly, but the point that it's not smart enough to have a useful UI switch is annoying.

 

And that's just the right side.  The left side icons are just as bad for tab previews, set aside tabs, etc.  So many buttons!

 

Chrome allows you to have a clean, useful interface.  All I'm asking is for Edge to allow you to do the same.  It seems that the ecosystem is moving toward wanting to show us lots and lots of buttons (that we never touch) vs only show us the buttons that we really use.  There's no synergy in the Microsoft ecosystem here, in the sense that some programs behave this way, and others don't.