Microsoft updates Edge and browser tabs will never be the same

Microsoft has finally dropped the Edge browser update offering vertical tabs in the sidebar, rather than sitting horizontally below the URL bar.

In an announcement this week, Microsoft confirmed it had rolled out the feature announced last year.

Microsoft says the feature will take advantage of existing white space either side of the content users enjoy browsing on the web. The company said it makes more sense for users who have dozens of tabs open for months at a time, to shift those tabs to a scrollable list.

“Some people are very rigorous about only opening tabs they need and closing them when they’re done. But others accumulate dozens of tabs and keep them open for weeks or months at a time,” says William Devereux, a Senior Program Manager on Edge. “For these users, it can be incredibly difficult to find the tab they’re looking for.”

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You can see the shift in the gif file below:

Microsoft says users will be able to shift between horizontal and vertical tabs, depending on the number of tabs they have open. That comes via a visible toggle in the top left corner of the browser. There’s also a collapsible pane and a light colour palette in order to distinguish the sidebar.

Elsewhere, the Edge 89 update also includes some under-the-bonnet changes that leads to faster start-up of the browser. Microsoft said the boost will be anywhere from 29% to 41% faster.

In a post on its Tech Community blog, Microsoft says: “Startup boost works by keeping a few Microsoft Edge processes running when the browser is not visible. This allows Microsoft Edge to start more quickly when, for example, you click the Microsoft Edge icon, a hyperlink from another application, or search from the search box in the Task Bar.”