Microsoft has updated its Edge browser with native support for Apple Silicon, promising optimized performance for Macs with the M1 chip.
The update was announced through the official Edge developers Twitter account, which invited users to download the new version from the Microsoft Edge Canary Channel, a subsection of the Microsoft Edge Insiders website.
You asked, and we delivered! 💪 Native support for Mac ARM64 devices is now available in our Canary channel. Download it today from our Microsoft Edge Insiders website! https://t.co/qJMMGV0HjU
— Microsoft Edge Dev (@MSEdgeDev) December 16, 2020
Microsoft didn't specify what kind of performance improvements users can expect from the M1-optimized version of its browser, but if it's anything like Firefox's supercharged Apple silicon update, loyal Edge users should have something to celebrate.
Earlier this week, Apple shared a list of popular apps optimized for M1 Macs that are available in the Mac App Store, such as Pixelmator Pro, Adobe Lightroom, Affinity Designer, Darkroom, Fantastical, OmniFocus, BBEdit, Instapaper, and Twitter. Apple boasted that apps optimized for the M1 chip deliver "game-changing speed and capabilities."
Last month, Apple released its first Macs with the M1 chip, including a new 13-inch MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, and Mac mini.
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Faster Uses far less memory with all the same tabs and extensions enabled (around 1/3 the total Chrome uses) They stripped out all of Google's tracking services, using strictly the rendering engine To that previous point, there's far more Privacy settings that are very easy to find, like Brave, to give more granular control Has PlayReady DRM in addition to WideVine, so you can use it for more media sites Tracking Prevention (like Safari) by default And for those in an older Enterprise Corpo world... IE mode
One of the biggest problems with Windows 10 for ARM was the lack of updates to existing software making it a difficult transition to make (along with poor chip support - the processors that were chosen were not good ones).
One of the biggest worries with moving to the ARM chips was going to be software support. And the turn around from developers has been absolutely fantastic. It's already becoming a non-issue only a month into to the transition.
Subjective opinion incoming: I really like Microsoft Edge (and have been using this Canary release most of the day). Edge features many of the benefits of Google Chrome (website compatibility, etc) without having to use a Google product. This M1 version is very quick indeed and feels snappy. According to Activity Monitor, memory usage is on par with Safari in terms of general browsing (sits around 10% of CPU usage). I haven't tested video playback within each browser, mind, and I'm on a Mac Mini, so I can't speak to any effects on battery life.
One of the biggest problems with Windows 10 for ARM was the lack of updates to existing software making it a difficult transition to make (along with poor chip support - the processors that were chosen were not good ones).
One of the biggest worries with moving to the ARM chips was going to be software support. And the turn around from developers has been absolutely fantastic. It's already becoming a non-issue only a month into to the transition.
At this point I'm more worried about Intel support in a few years. Can't be long before there are ARM-only apps.
