Today is the day: Microsoft begins phasing out the new Edge on all supported devices

Today is the day that Microsoft begins rolling out its new offering in terms of browsers. Edge based on Chromium is a reality and can replace or coexist with the classic version that we all know after passing through the three well-known development channels: Canary, Dev and Beta.

Today, January 15, Microsoft begins shipping to supported Windows 10-based PCs and the new Edge will transition to be the default browser on our computers and tablets (at least if the user so decides).If you have a PC or tablet with Windows 10 Home and Pro, you can find the new update through Windows Update.

A New Edge

If you have a PC or tablet with a version equal to or later than Windows 10 May 2018 Update that meet the requirements, the new Edge will arrive as a separate update. If, on the other hand, you are using a PC with Windows 10 Education or Windows 10 Enterprise, the update will not arrive with Windows Update, the same as with Windows 7, Windows 8.1, Windows 10 and macOS, systems in the users will have to download and install manually the new Chromium-based Edge.

For all of you who are using Edge and don't want to know anything about the new version, you can block the arrival of Chromium-based Edge with a tool that Microsoft makes available to you at this link.

It is a blocking system designed especially for professional environments and to help companies avoid the automatic deployment of Microsoft Edge Chromium-based in environments where Automatic Updates are enabled. In this way, the new version of Edge will be blocked without an expiration date.

This is a process that can be carried out by hand by following these steps, although it is much less comfortable:

• Press the Windows key and type regedit.
• Press the Enter key and enter the Windows registry editor.
• We are looking for the folder HKEY LOCAL MACHINESOFTWAREMicrosoftEdgeUpdate.
• If the EdgeUpdate key does not exist, we create it by right clicking on Microsoft > New > Key and give it the name EdgeUpdate.
• Select the key EdgeUpdate and click on the right side of the window and select New > Value DWORD (32-bit)
• We use DoNotUpdateToEdgeWithChromium as the name of the key to change its value data to 1.

This new version abandons the Edge HTML engine and bets on Chromium A browser that aspires to conquer users dissatisfied with Chrome or Firefox offering in return and to achieve this a browser with better performance and lower consumption of RAM and battery.

I just ran the check on a Windows 10 PC upgraded to Windows 10 November 2019 Update and Edge is not available, and it is not available for macOS either. You have to wait hours or days to start using Edge outside the development channels and experience the improvements it brings.