14 DAY TRIAL // The Chromium-based Microsoft Edge browser is now available for download, and since the stable version has finally shipped, Microsoft can now focus on improving the overall experience going forward.
One key focus for the software giant is the design of the browser, and the company says it’s closely analyzing user feedback to determine which areas need further refinement and which don’t.
In a post on the Microsoft Edge forums, Elliot Kirk, senior software development engineer at Microsoft, explains that the company has grouped the existing feedback into several categories that it will continue to monitor in the near future.
One of them concerns “the ability to add distinct color or color themes to the main browser interface,” as Kirk notes. Microsoft is expected to do more work in this regard to further enhance browser customization, in addition to Microsoft Edge already supporting themes from the Chrome Web Store.
Hello, transparency
Another key focus for Microsoft will be adding transparency and other material effects to the main browser interface. Such improvements would further expand the integration of the new browser into the Fluent Design system that’s already being used by Microsoft for Windows 10 and other apps.
New animations in the user interface, a reveal effect to highlight on mouse hover, and smaller tab bar and toolbars on devices without touch are also ideas that Microsoft is currently looking into.
“It is our goal for our design to be easier to use on a daily basis. When you provide feedback, it helps us to challenge our assumptions and makes us reanalyze our conclusions,” Kirk explains.
Of course, such changes won’t just be implemented overnight, so it’ll like take some time until Microsoft gets enough feedback and introduces them in the stable version of Edge. As usual, expect more experiments to make their way to the Canary build faster.