Seemingly right on cue as I attempt to live with using ONLY the Edge browser for all my computer needs on my Windows 10 laptop, Edge shows up to help supplement my Microsoft only browser experiment on my Android phone as well.
I’ll talk more about my Chromebook like experiment with Edge later, but for now, Microsoft has made my move to a browser only world a bit easier by facilitating the use of the said browser on my new phone OS of choice, Android.
Early last week, Microsoft teased that its Windows 10 browser would be making the platform jump from Windows only to both iOS and Android in the coming days. Right off the bat, iOS users were invited to test a preview version of it while Android users were put on the bench for a couple of days, but today, fans with Android devices can now start testing the Edge browser on their daily handsets.
With just a few moments under my belt, here is how the experience has been thus far.
I’m not sure this is universal, but I started with several crashes as the browser looked to authenticate my Microsoft ID. However, once the app and I reconciled the situation, I was let through the VIP ropes into the Edge club where my favorite web pages sat waiting for me to party.
While not a true Universal Windows Platform port equipped with the Chakra Javascript engine, Edge for Android does a relatively nice facsimile of the look and feel Windows 10 users get. The app remains spartan and fluid and brings Top Stories to the search home.
As of right now, Reading List and ePub books seems to be missing from the app, or at least haven’t synced.
The app is in its early stages but if Edge on the desktop is an example of the speed of development for the platform, users should be comfortable enough using the browser as their daily driver soon.
Try it out here.
