On Tuesday the Windows 10 Anniversary Update became available for Windows 10 Users across the world. With the release came many changes to Microsoft’s latest operating system. One of these biggest changes is the introduction of EdgeHTML 14 to Microsoft’s Edge Browser, according to a new post on the Edge Dev blog. Overall, the introduction of EdgeHTML 14 means users of Edge now have access to new extensions, better accessibility, design, efficiency, security, and performance.
To begin the set of changes, thanks to EdgeHTML 14, Microsoft’s Edge Browser on the Windows 10 Anniversary Update earned a perfect score on the HTML5 Accessibility browser benchmark. This is by part thanks to improvements in Edge’s browser frame and rendering engine. As seen below, this also makes Microsoft Edge in the Anniversary Update is easily the most accessible browser ever.
Continuing on, EdgeHTML 14 also adds in more efficiency to Microsoft Edge. Overall, Edge HTML 14 improves the efficiency of background tabs by reducing the frequency of JavaScript timer execution, leading to energy savings of up to 90% in some scenarios. Furthermore, when it comes to performance, EdgeHTML 14 measures and tunes performance across the board to make the Edge browser core components more fast and efficient. As seen in the graphic below, Edge outscores Chrome in Google Octane 2.o, Apple JetStream, and WebKit Sun Spider.
Third in the areas of improvements delivered by Edge HTML 14 is the fact that websites just work. According to Microsoft, “EdgeHTML14 builds in Microsoft’s strategy of matching the API’s that developers are actually using in the wild, and the “interoperable intersection” of today’s most popular browsers.” Ultimately, this strategy leads to EdgeHTML14 including support for dozens of new HTML5 standards, media formats, and JavaScript features. It also led to Edge trying Firefox on the HTML5Test and maintaining a healthy lead over Safari (seen below.)
These changes are all great, and Microsoft is noting that they are working on the technologies that will power next-generation web app experiences in the coming years. The third major release since Edge was unveiled, EdgeHTMl14, nonetheless, still puts down a good foundation for the next generation of the web to come.
