Microsoft Removing Features from Edge to Improve User Experience

Microsoft just can't catch a break with Edge, no matter how much it foists the browser upon Windows users. After completely redesigning its web browser around the open source Chromium engine, Microsoft has seen little improvement in its share of web traffic. The devs have been adding features in hopes of attracting more users, but now it's flipped the script. Edge version 117 will remove numerous features.

Edge 117 started rolling out in the beta channel late last week, with an additional patch making the rounds just a few days later. The update includes the usual smattering of improvements and bug fixes, but the changelog includes a rarely seen “Deprecation of features” header. “To improve end user experience and simplify the More tools menu, the following features are being deprecated: Math Solver, Picture Dictionary, Citations, Grammar Tools, and Kids Mode,” the item reads.

You would not be alone in wondering what those features do. Microsoft is pulling them because they have low usage, and there's no point cluttering an already feature-rich browser with things people don't use. It would also be a waste of development resources to continue supporting these features. Don't worry, though. You're not missing much.

Math Solver would let you highlight and solve math problems, which is redundant now that ChatGPT can do it for you. Grammar Tools could remind you of tricky grammar rules. Picture Dictionary was a reading comprehension tool that let you highlight words to see an image, if available. Kids Mode, as the name implies, was supposed to make the browser more kid-friendly with content filtering and a simpler interface. Finally, there's Citations, which might be the only useful one in the bunch. This simple feature would let you generate APA, MLA, or Chicago-formatted citations for a given web page.

Removing underperforming features might be a net positive, but it's not going to turn around Edge's fortunes. According to StatCounter, Microsoft was hovering around 3% of the global browser market (all platforms) in 2020 before switching to Chromium, and three years later, it's at 5%. Google Chrome is way out in the lead with more than 60%, which is even more impressive when you realize that many of those people are using Edge to download Chrome on their computers.

If Edge is ever going to have an impact on how people browse the web, it'll come in the form of AI. Edge 117 actually has a little AI magic built in, too. The find feature now uses AI to guess at what word you mean when you mistype, but the big AI features are connected to the company's ChatGPT partnership. The new Copilot feature will be integrated with Edge, allowing you to ask questions about the content you're viewing.

If you want to give Edge another shot, it's probably already on your Windows PC. Just open it. The fact Microsoft still has so much trouble getting people to open a pre-installed app does not bode well for the browser's future. Edge 117 is currently in beta, but it should roll out to the stable channel in the coming weeks.