Redmond says Edge is the only browser with tab preview

Dec 30, 2016 08:39 GMT  ·  By

​Microsoft has put a lot of effort into making Edge browser a better rival to Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox, and this also involves marketing efforts that would help users get to know the app and its features.

In its latest attempt on Twitter, Microsoft has posted a message saying that Edge is “the only browser that lets you pin & preview tabs,” along with a GIF showing this feature in action (we’ve also attached a screenshot with this tweet for posterity, just in case Microsoft removes it).

And while nobody can deny that Microsoft Edge indeed improved a lot since first seeing daylight as Spartan, this tweet is nothing but wrong, as the tab preview feature is already available in some other browsers as well, including Opera and Vivaldi.

The tweet backfired quickly, and some Twitter users who noticed the message accused the company of lying in its attempt to promote Edge.

“Please, why lie? Both Vivaldi and Opera browsers have that characteristic since at least a couple years back,” @Treiral posted. “I’m pretty sure Opera and Vivaldi Browser had that first,” @ZMYaro continued, while @rthor added that Microsoft’s tweet was “just not true.”

Opera’s tab preview features

While at first glance whoever is in charge of the Microsoft Edge Twitter account failed to do his or her homework before posting, there’s also a good chance that the tweet actually referred to Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox, the two browsers that Microsoft has always considered to be Edge’s main rivals.

Does this mean that Microsoft doesn’t care about Opera? Maybe, but that would be just awkward given the fact that Opera has far more features than Edge, and yes, including the tab preview tool that Microsoft itself praised in its tweet.

Truth be told, tab previews can be enabled and disabled from the settings screen in Opera, but they are already supported, so no, Microsoft is not the only browser that supports this feature.

Tab preview support in the current stable version of Opera
Tab preview support in the current stable version of Opera
And this is tab preview in Edge on Windows 10 Anniversary Update
And this is tab preview in Edge on Windows 10 Anniversary Update

Photo Gallery (3 Images)

The tweet that Microsoft posted on December 29
Tab preview support in the current stable version of OperaAnd this is tab preview in Edge on Windows 10 Anniversary Update
Open gallery