Last week marked the release of a significant update for Microsoft’s latest version of the Windows OS. The newest update to Windows 10, named Threshold 2, has also marked major improvements to Microsoft’s Edge web browser as well.
The biggest of them all, being the availability of EdgeHTML 13 rendering engine to its regular Windows 10 users — a feature which only Insiders had access to till date. EdgeHTML 13 is Microsoft’s latest iteration of its rendering engine, which promises faster speed and enhanced feature set in the new Edge browser, as compared with IE or others.
Microsoft has also made public the scores of various benchmarks tests for Edge. Microsoft Edge managed to score 458 points in HTML 5 test. The addition of EdgeHTML 13 has helped Edge better its previous score by 56 points over EdgeHTML 12 and 117 points over Internet Explorer.
This update marks a special moment for the Windows 10 web platform as we ship the same version of EdgeHTML to all Windows 10 devices: PCs, Windows 10 phones (via the Windows Insider Program), and even Xbox One. Whether it’s adaptive images on phones with the <picture> element and extended srcset, or even in-browser gaming on the Xbox One with WebGL and GamePad API, Microsoft Edge empowers users and developers alike to be confident in a consistent, modern, and powerful experience across devices.
Stated Kyle Pflug, Program Manager, Microsoft Edge
With the TH2 update, Edge now also supports Chakra, the JavaScript engine that is at the heart of Edge. The overall scores achieved by Edge 13, make it the fastest browser in the world, handsomely beating its biggest competitors, Google Chrome and Firefox by a large margin. Though note though, that both Chrome and Firefox come with much more features as compared to Edge, which could be a contributor to lower scores.
The update is universal across all devices as EdgeHTML 13 runs the Microsoft’ s flagship web browser on PC’s, Smartphone and Tablets.
Some of the other additions that come with last week’s TH2 update include a new tab preview feature on Edge, coupled with improved security and performance. The tab preview feature allows users to get a sneak peek into the content of a web page by simply navigating the cursor on the tab icon. Other improvements include the ability to sync Favourites list and Reading preferences between your various personal devices that run on Windows 10.
Microsoft is still holding onto the impending launch of extension support in Edge. As Microsoft missed out on introducing this feature with TH2, it is speculated that that it might provide extension support to Edge in its next big update, the Redstone OS update slated for release sometime early next year.
With TH2, Microsoft’s virtual assistant Cortana also gets a stylus support and now allows users to write notes through the accessory. Most important part of this update is that Cortana is now available in India.
