Windows 10 - Microsoft Edge might not be a complete failure after all
WINDOWS 10's minimalist new web browser, Microsoft Edge, has seen a small surge in usage – after it plummeted to abysmal levels last year.
Microsoft Edge has seen an increase in market share, according to the latest usage figures on desktop browsers.
According to statistics firm NetMarketShare, the Cortana-powered web browser has seen a bump of 0.06 per cent since the last figures were published.
This continues the trend set by previous usage figures, the company has confirmed.
Microsoft Edge now accounts for 5.61 per cent of all desktop web browser usage, NetMarketShare has reported.
The next-generation Microsoft web browser had previously hit a high of 16 per cent of all browser activity worldwide following the roll-out of Windows 10, where the app is set as the default.
Speaking at the time, Jackson Newhouse, of Quantcast said: "The wide release of Windows 10 did initially bump Edge’s market share from 12 per cent to 16 per cent.
"However, this increase was temporary, with Chrome recovering from temporary losses and reaching over 70 per cent market share of Windows 10, higher than the 63 per cent it pulls in on Windows 7 and 8.
"More and more users are using Windows 10 every day, and most have shifted off of the old Internet Explorer.
"However, that movement hasn’t entirely been towards Edge, with a number of users choosing Chrome instead.
"Microsoft may be able to make further inroads into the browser market with Edge, but it’ll take more than a new operating system to unseat Chrome’s dominance."
Microsoft has rolled-out a number of new features and updates to its new web browser since it first launched.
The minimalist browser now supports extensions, as well as an in-built eBook reader.
The number of people choosing Internet Explorer has continued to decline, according to NetMarketShare.
The browser has seen its share fall to 18.95 per cent – a drop of some 0.22 per cent.
As more and more people make the move to Windows 10, Microsoft Edge is clearly becoming the new default for many users.
Google Chrome is still comfortably the web’s most popular web browser – far ahead in the race with its 58.64 per cent market share.
The news comes as the 10th annual Pwn2Own event appeared to prove that Google Chrome was the least hackable web browser available today.
