With the introduction of Windows 10, Microsoft announced a brand new Project Spartan browser – Microsoft Edge. The browser was based on Microsoft's EdgeHTML rendering engine. Due to a different web rendering engine, the Edge browser never gained much interest among developers. Microsoft Edge lacked a long list of extension support, and often some popular sites didn't work well with the default Windows 10 browser. Microsoft finally relented and announced the Chromium-based Edge browser.
Contents1. Import browser data2. Use the Chrome Web Store3. Use dark theme4. Switch between layout on homepage5. Customize news6. Save news articles for later reading7. Changing the default search engine8. Use read mode9. Pin Brower Tabs10. Use Microsoft Edge Collections11. Check privacy settingsUse Microsoft Edge like a pro
After several updates, the company is now confident enough with the new Edge browser and has replaced the old offering on Windows and macOS. There's a lot to love about the new Microsoft Edge browser.
If you're new to the Chromium-based Microsoft Edge browser, then this article might be the perfect read for you. We are going to talk about the top eleven tips and tricks for Microsoft Edge Chromium. Let's start.
Download Microsoft Edge for Windows and macOS
Before starting from scratch on Microsoft Edge browser, you may want to import history, bookmarks and other information from the old installed browser. Microsoft allows you to import data from the previous browser you were using.
Open Microsoft Edge, tap the three-dot menu at the top and go to Settings. Go to Profiles> Import Browser Data. Here you can select the web browser, your Microsoft Edge profile, and the list of items you can import from the selected browser. The list includes bookmarks, saved passwords, addresses, payment info, open tabs, extensions, and more. I strongly recommend that you follow this practice before you begin.
Did you know that you can use almost all Chrome extensions with Microsoft Edge? As the browser is built on the same web rendering engine as Chrome, it can also install extensions from the Chrome web store. Go to the Chrome store on the web and download the appropriate extensions.
Windows 10 and macOS come with a dark theme that works system-wide. Fortunately, Microsoft has implemented the same with the Edge browser. It supports light and dark themes. You can go to Browser Settings> Appearance> Theme and choose from the system default theme, light or dark. I would like to see automatic dark mode in future updates.
Microsoft Edge provides a fairly busy homepage. It offers a Bing search bar, frequently visited sites, Bing images in the background, and Microsoft News integration at the bottom. However, you can change this to your liking.
From the home page, tap the Settings icon and choose from Focused (clean), Inspirational (with wallpaper), Informational (with Microsoft News integration), and a custom layout.
Microsoft News is the direct rival of Google News. It is integrated directly on the home screen. From the bottom menu, tap on Customize and it will open the My Interests menu. Select relevant topics that interest you and delete unnecessary ones.
Microsoft lets you save news for later reading. During your peak hours, you can browse news headlines and, if interested, tap the three-dot menu under the news headline and select Save for Later. To access the Saved List, go to the Customize menu and navigate to the Saved Stories menu.
As expected, Microsoft is forcing consumers to use its Bing search engine. However, you can change this from the settings. Open Settings> Privacy and services> scroll down to the address bar and set Google as the search engine used in the address bar.
You can also configure the browser to open the Google home page every time you open it on the device. Go to Browser Settings> On Startup> Select Open a specific page and set Google as the default homepage.
Microsoft Edge comes with a great reading mode that removes ads and unnecessary clutter from the web page. When you visit a web page, just tap the reader icon in the address bar and the reader mode will provide a clear interface to read messages.
You can change the font size, style, reading mode background and even have the system read the message aloud.
You can pin the most frequently visited web pages on Edge browser. I use it all the time. Right click on any tab and select Pin tab and it will be hidden in the top left corner. So every time you open the browser, the tabs load themselves and the web pages are already ready for you.
Microsoft recently introduced the Collections feature for the Edge browser. It is a modern bookmark manager. You can create a collection of web pages and notes and give it a relevant title in Collections. This is useful during research.
Tap the collections icon, select start a new collection, add a title, and you're ready to add web pages and notes.
By default, Microsoft Edge offers a balanced approach to blocking harmful trackers. You can change these settings to strict mode which blocks the majority of site trackers. You can also switch to Basic mode. Open Settings> Privacy &Services and select from the available options.
Microsoft Edge Chromium is an impressive offering from the software company. Of the tricks listed, Default Reader Mode and Microsoft Edge Collections are two of my favorites. And you? Sound off in the comments section below.
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Interested in using the Microsoft Edge browser on Mac? Read the guide below to configure the browser from scratch.
