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New Microsoft Edge for Xbox one

Brass Contributor

Hey community,

I want to know whether it is planned to bring the new edge browser to Xbox one. Or is there already a release date?

Sincerely yours

Fabian

20 Replies

I second this. I find myself using legacy Edge on Xbox for a few websites and it is painful.

@Fabi_450 Thanks for reaching out, and welcome to our community. Currently, we don't have any news to share about Microsoft Edge on Xbox, but we will definitely let you all know if we do.

 

Fawkes (they/them)
Project & Community Manager - Microsoft Edge

@Fabi_450 The new Microsoft Edge is based on Chromium and Chromium is a win32 app. Xbox One runs a form of Windows 10 that only supports UWP apps. Microsoft hasn't thought this out. They're ditching UWP and yet advocating for it. The conflict continues in the Office suite too with OneNote.

@pneenkoalabear Thank you all for your responses.

So if I am getting it right, does your post also mean that the new Xbox Series X console will have the "old" edge browser? In my case the browser on the xbox one works pretty good, but there are a few sites which are not supported and that is bad.

Hope that they can work it around.

idk how xbox series x works. it might be running linux like stadia or something. but we've seen how microsoft rolls. it probably won't have the new edge or maybe no browser at all.

@Fabi_450 I doubt Microsoft will ever do such a thing. In fact, it would be another small step to making the Xbox a regular PC - and they will NEVER do that. The Xbox is heavily subsidized (compared to PS), and pushing the Xbox as a PC replacement is the last thing Microsoft wants.

I wonder if the Chromium addon works in Kodi for Xbox.

I would like to know the same thing. New edge app for Xbox please.

Microsoft just released the WebView2 browser control component that is based on the Chromium Edge browser.

@pneenkoalabear This can also be used from UWP apps.

https://devblogs.microsoft.com/dotnet/announcing-general-availability-for-microsoft-edge-webview2-fo...

This should provide the XBox developer team all they need to make an XBox shell for Chromium Edge. I hope this will be put on the roadmap ASAP.

Um. That's literally impossible as I said before. Xbox is based on UWP. WebView2 is for Chromium Edge, which is win32. Therefore it cannot run on Xbox. WebView2 is available for "UWP" DESKTOP apps. An easy way to think about it is just as a portal or as a window into an interfaceless Edge.

@Fabi_450 

I recommend you and everyone who is interested to have Microsoft Edge in Xbox, make sure share this feedback through feedback option in Microsoft Edge.

@pneenkoalabear 

It's not "literally impossible", you're just uninformed.  Webview2 (the key component to make this happen) will be generally available by end of the year as part of .Net Core 3.1 on all platforms where .Net Core is currently available.  It will likely onyl be a matter of a few more months depending on the priority they're giving to this (which I imagine is not very high).  See the following links for more information about the years worth of work that have already been put towards these initiatives.

 

Microsoft Edge WebView2 Control - Microsoft Edge Development | Microsoft Docs

 

ProjectReunion/README.md at main · microsoft/ProjectReunion (github.com)

Perhaps I am just uninformed. I have read that article and the Project Reunion readme before but still don't understand 😕 If anything, I am even more sure that there's a dependency on Edge Chromium which is a win32 app.

@Deleted Is there a 3rd party software that we can download it from?

 

@pneenkoalabear 

I just tried installing the MSIX beta package on my Win 10 Pro laptop, and I think the error message will bring you some joy (in bold towards the end).

App installation failed with error message: Windows cannot install package Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge.Beta_88.0.705.15_x64__8wekyb3d8bbwe because this package is not compatible with the device. The package can only be installed on the following device families: Windows.Core Windows.Holographic Windows.Xbox (0x80073cfd)

 

Edit: I did also try downloading and installing on the Xbox and it didn't know what to open it with, so maybe we're just waiting on a system update to support MSIX and also maybe for it to be put in the store.

@IanCammarata 

Already tried contacting them about it, no news on it yet. IT would be harder to port Chromimum Edge to XBOX since it is CHromimum and Not their own software. 

hmmm. It's frustrating that they only have an MSIX for those platforms and not for Windows. What's the point of developing MSIX? None of their own products use MSIX. Those platforms also have win32 emulation (or a shim, as some people have called it?). Perhaps Xbox will be getting win32 emulation? I don't think it'll work on Xbox. It could've been a packaging error. The file size is also consistent with that of Chromium.
Yeah, it's definitely the win32 Edge (just browsed through it using 7-Zip). What's the point of MSIX if they aren't going to use it. I'm sure it'd run on W10 without modification if they just flicked a switch in their packaging tool or added the desktop device family to the appxmanifest lol. It wouldn't run on Xbox until it gets the shim/emulator that W10X and HoloLens have.
best response confirmed by Fabi_450 (Brass Contributor)
Solution
GOOD NEWS.

Microsoft has started publicly testing the "Chromium-powered" version of their Edge browser on Xbox consoles. Xbox testers in the Alpha Skip-Ahead group can now access the new Microsoft Edge on Xbox One or Xbox Series S / X consoles. It is also planned that you will be able to use a USB keyboard and MOUSE with this new app, but in the early stages of Alphs, there still needs work to be done.

However, it is in testing and scheduled to be released sometime this summer - 2021.

WOO HOO !!!
Awesome thanks for replying
1 best response

Accepted Solutions
best response confirmed by Fabi_450 (Brass Contributor)
Solution
GOOD NEWS.

Microsoft has started publicly testing the "Chromium-powered" version of their Edge browser on Xbox consoles. Xbox testers in the Alpha Skip-Ahead group can now access the new Microsoft Edge on Xbox One or Xbox Series S / X consoles. It is also planned that you will be able to use a USB keyboard and MOUSE with this new app, but in the early stages of Alphs, there still needs work to be done.

However, it is in testing and scheduled to be released sometime this summer - 2021.

WOO HOO !!!

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