Microsoft announced in late 2018 that it would abandon EdgeHTML and move the Microsoft Edge browser to the Chromium engine, technically creating its own Google Chrome browser.
And while the company hasn't shared a specific timeline on when the revamped app might go live, it did reveal that a preview of the new Edge will be released in early 2019.
With everyone now waiting for this preview to be built, it was initially thought that the company would tie this early release to the Windows Insider program.
However, as recently discovered, that won't happen, as Microsoft wants to release a standalone installer that will allow anyone to see what the new Chromium-based Microsoft Edge browser is like.
There is no timetable for a stable release
"We can't commit to a specific timeline, but we plan to make it available as a separate download, so you can install it whether or not you have access to Windows Insider builds," a Microsoft engineer said on Reddit.
He also added that a specific date for when the Microsoft Edge preview might be released is not yet available, although an announcement is expected to follow in the first few months of this year.
“We’re working to roll out the preview as soon as possible – early 2019 is still our first choice, but we want to make sure the first preview is a great experience, so we’re not ready to commit to anything more specific at this time. Stay tuned!”
The company hasn't shared a timeline for the potential release of the final Chromium-based Edge, but it's believed that this could happen in the fall, when the next major operating system update for Windows 10 is completed. The upcoming April 2019 Update will ship with the current version of Microsoft Edge as the default browser.
