Microsoft Renames Project Spartan to Microsoft Edge

Project Spartan has long been known as the replacement for Microsoft’s aging Internet Explorer browser lineup. Debuting alongside Windows 10 later this year, the new browser finally shed its codename and was officially christened Microsoft Edge. This new name aligns the browser with the name of its underlying rendering engine, Edge. The new browser cuts out most of the legacy cruft left from Internet Explorer as well.

Microsoft Edge has a number of notable new features compared to Internet Explorer. HTML and Javascript extensions are supported, allowing extensions from Chrome and Firefox to be easily ported. This will do much to ensure a vibrant extension community right from the start. Cortana, Microsoft’s new personal assistant will also feature heavy integration with the browser. Customizable tab groupings and a revamped New Tab page also feature as well. Inking support and a reading list are also added in.

In line with the renaming, Microsoft has made a new video highlighting what most of the new features will look like. While light on details and more of a blur than anything, it does showcase everything pretty well. For now we’ll have to wait for Edge to fully hit the Windows 10 Preview before we can see the browser in its entirety as it is still in development.