Microsoft Edge version 111 has hit the Stable Channel for everyone to download, coming in at version 111.0.1661.41. The update comes with several notable features. Here’s a look at what you need to know.
First up, the update ships with a new Edge Sidebar which unpacks several new features and improvements designed to enhance productivity and the user experience. The new Edge Sidebar powered by Edge Copilot will let you boost your productivity and efficiency by providing intelligent suggestions and insights based on the context of the web page and the user’s goals.
The Edge Copilot will help you compose better emails, search the web faster, and learn new skills just like the new Bing icon in the Toolbar. Additionally, the Sidebar’s visibility has been enhanced as it features a new Auto-Hide functionality that allows users to maximize the productivity of the sidebar without taking up too much of the screen’s real estate.
What’s more, the update has improved how users will interact with the Sidebar. By hovering on the Bing icon in the Toolbar, you can launch it. Other key features and improvements are highlighted below:
- Microsoft Feed on Microsoft 365 Edge New Tab Page. We’re rolling out a new experience to the Microsoft 365 tab of the Edge Enterprise New Tab Page. This experience will feature a new layout that centers on a larger version of the Microsoft Feed, featuring more productivity content, and moves the productivity cards including Important Emails, Recent SharePoint sites, Upcoming events, and To Do to the right-hand side of the Microsoft 365 tab.
- Enhanced security mode improvements. Enhanced security mode now supports WebAssembly for macOS x64 and Linux x64. More cross-platform (ARM64) support is expected in the future. For more information, see Browse more safely with Microsoft Edge.
- New policy to clear IE mode data on browser exit. The InternetExplorerModeClearDataOnExitEnabled policy controls whether browsing history is deleted from Internet Explorer and Internet Explorer mode every time Microsoft Edge is closed. Users can also configure this setting in the ‘Clear browsing data for Internet Explorer’ option in the Privacy, search, and services menu of Settings (edge://settings/privacy).
As usual, the release brings some depreciated and new policies. We invite you to check out Microsoft’s changelog for more on these. In related news, Microsoft announced that it is currently testing a new feature in the Edge Canary Channel designed to upscale videos with low resolutions dubbed Video Super Resolution. It’s powered by AI technology from Microsoft research.
Microsoft Edge should auto-update to the latest version, but if it does not, you can trigger it manually. Just head to the browser’s menu, choose Help and Feedback then About Microsoft Edge and wait for the update to download, and then restart.