Microsoft has updated its Edge browser for Mac with several new features, bringing "sleeping tabs," a password generator and monitor, new visual themes, and more.
The "Sleeping tabs" feature aims to improve performance by releasing system resources for inactive or backgrounded tabs. The feature is optional and can be enabled in the browser settings menu.
Meanwhile, the new password generator suggests to users a secure and complex password whenever they sign up to a website for the first time or attempt to change an existing password. Edge also now notifies users if a password has been compromised in a data breach, which is similar to a feature recently introduced in Apple's Safari browser.
Elsewhere, 24 new themes offer visual customizations that affect various parts of the browser interface, including tabs, tab pages, and the address bar. The Edge development team has partnered with Xbox to offer themes from Microsoft franchises, including Halo, Gears, Forza, Flight Simulator, Sea of Thieves, Grounded, Ori and the Will of the Wisps, and more.
In addition, sidebar search is now generally available in Microsoft Edge. While browsing web pages, users can highlight a word, right click and search. A side panel will open with search results so they can get quick answers without having to navigate away from your current page.
Automatic Profile Switching has also come to macOS, as described in Microsoft's blog post:
One of our most loved features, called Automatic Profile Switching, makes its way to macOS this month. I like to keep my work browsing and personal browsing activities separate, and profile switching makes it so easy. Now macOS provides the ability to switch sites that authenticate with a user’s work profile so it’s easier to toggle between work and personal browsing. To get started, check with your local admin if automatic profile switch is enabled for your organization. If so, sign in with your Microsoft personal and work accounts and you’re ready to go.
Microsoft Edge has won over many users with its frequent feature updates and tight integration of Microsoft's design language with the design language of macOS. Tab syncing features were recently added, and it was also quick to offer native support for Apple Silicon, bringing optimized performance to Macs with the M1 chip. The browser can be downloaded from the Microsoft Edge website.
