14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft unveiled Spartan browser at its Windows 10 press event on Wednesday, confirming that the new operating system is set to ship with a replacement for Internet Explorer on all supported devices, including PCs, tablets, and smartphones.
The demo that Microsoft presented during the event also confirmed that Spartan would indeed be a browser focused on the action of reading, so the content you see online will be the core of everything.
The design of the app will be just like we've seen in leaked photos that have reached the web in the last few weeks: a cleaner look and a new tab bar at the top of the screen will be the key features, along with options to take notes and share them with friends online in a second.
Same features on both PCs and smartphones
As you can see in this photo provided by Microsoft itself, Spartan will feature a similar look on both PCs and smartphones, so you shouldn't have any problem when using it, no matter the device.
On PCs, however, the tab bar at the top of the screen will clearly come in handy, while on smartphones there's a small button at the bottom that allows you to switch from one tab to another easily.
The mobile version of Spartan will also include few buttons to access the key features such as sharing options, add a page to favorites and refresh the loaded website.
Of course, the experience will be greatly improved on the desktop, where a more advanced UI will be provided, but overall, Spartan will try to make browsing as enjoyable as possible on all devices.
Spartan won't be included in the next Windows 10 Technical Preview build that will be shipped to Windows Insiders next week, but Microsoft promised that it should be ready for testing sometime in the next two, three, or four months.
Windows 10 is scheduled to go live in the fall of 2015, so the new browser should be ready before that moment.