Windows users are stuck with the Edge browser installed on their PC, but that browser could soon have a different look and be more deeply integrated with the operating system.
As Windows Central reports, an internal project codenamed "Phoenix" is being run by the Microsoft User Research team as an attempt to reimagine the web browser for Windows 11. It started last summer and is tweaking both the user interface and features integrated into Edge. Feedback is then gathered internally at Microsoft, which guides the direction development takes.
The project was first revealed publicly by Twitter user WalkingCat, and Phoenix is already starting to bear fruit. A couple of days ago, anyone running the beta, dev, or canary versions of Edge got to play with a new feature called "Split Screen," which is apparently the Phoenix feature most-liked within Microsoft. The updated user interface with rounded tabs was also the work of Phoenix.
What's unclear right now is whether Microsoft intends to keep drip feeding features developed as part of Phoenix into the existing Edge browser, or at some point reveal a big update containing lots of changes—and there are some potentially big ones planned.
As this is an internal experiment and feedback loop, it's difficult to know what will and won't make the cut. However, new features in development include a Tab Activity Center focused on offering details of browser usage of time, Edge doubling as a password manager for all of Windows, and the Edge setup process happening alongside Windows when you first boot a new PC.