Microsoft has decided to adopt Chromium in Edge. No, this is not a joke, and of course it raises questions. “Why do we need an Edge with Chromium and not download Chrome?”
But there is also the opposite question:
“Why use Chrome when there's an Edge powered by Chromium?”
If you think about the reasons you don't use Edge, you'll find a very important one: Microsoft's browser didn't have the extensions that Chrome has, and of course no one wants to give up their favorite extensions.
Just like when Firefox was competing with Internet Explorer, users fell in love with all the third-party add-ons, and I think for many, choosing a browser is directly linked to whether it supports extensions.
I'm not talking about the users who don't know what a browser does and just click the "blue e" that takes them to "google."
They're probably the reason that when Microsoft released Edge, the logo was similar to the one it used for Internet Explorer. The same users are probably the reason that the upcoming Edge with Chromium won't change its name or logo.
Microsoft is of course expecting it to be very easy for developers to port Chrome extensions to Edge. Details are not yet available, but most Chrome extensions should work. So there will be a lot of people who might try Edge if it offers the variety of Chrome extensions.
Why? It should be noted that there is a lot of controversy surrounding Chrome, mainly because it dominates the market so much that Google often does whatever it wants (Chrome has 63.60% of the market share in desktop browsers, according to Net Applications). But the latest headache has arisen because Google still doesn't understand the problem it's creating:
Chrome 69 tried to “simplify” the way it manages Google site logins by linking Chrome to the same account. So if you try to sign out of either Chrome or any Google site, you’ll be signed out of both.
This led to massive backlash from Chrome users, who were concerned that Google was tracking their browsing history in addition to Chrome syncing.
With the release of Chrome 70, Google added an option to disable linking websites to your Chrome account.
Behaviors like these, as well as many others that Google does as a company whose parent company makes all its money from advertising, give us plenty of reasons not to use yet another product that aims to track us further. Since Chrome extensions will work in Edge, why not Edge?
In its announcement of Chromium Edge, Microsoft promised that it would update its browser separately from Windows 10. Recall that Edge used to be updated every six months, along with major releases of Windows 10. But six months is a long time for a browser that constantly needs compatibility fixes, security updates, performance updates, and new features. (Chrome and Firefox are updated every six weeks.)
So even though I don't use Chrome (nor Edge) I will consider giving the upcoming Edge a try again, as it will have Chrome extensions and frequent updates. Of course, immediately after the browser transformation, Microsoft will have to constantly offer new reasons to keep those who try the new Edge.
Edge, in addition to new features, should focus on Google's pain point. It probably won't be that big of a surprise if we see improvements that will focus on protecting the privacy of the end user.
Of course, the competition will be fierce: Google will not stop developing Chrome.
But with a market share of 4%, Microsoft has nothing to lose.
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