Microsoft has been pushy with trying to get people to use Edge lately. Now, when you try to download Chrome through the Edge browser, a new pop-up may attempt to dissuade you by calling Chrome “so 2008.”
Neowin first spotted the new prompts, and they come with a few messages that pop up when you go to the Google Chrome download page through Microsoft Edge.
Here are the messages you might see:
“Microsoft Edge runs on the same technology as Chrome, with the added trust of Microsoft. ” “That browser is so 2008! Do you know what’s new? Microsoft Edge. ” “I hate saving money,’ said no one ever. Microsoft Edge is the best browser for online shopping. ”
These pop-ups are a little different than those Chrome surfaces, as those appear on the actual website. In the case of Edge’s pop-ups, they’re rendered natively by the browser, and other websites cannot display the same type of prompts.
Apparently, these pop-ups can appear for both Windows 10 and Windows 11, so Microsoft isn’t limiting its attempts to keep you on Edge to just the latest version of its OS.
These pop-ups come after Microsoft made it more challenging to change your default browser in Windows 11. It’s clear Microsoft wants Windows users to keep using Edge, and the company is using some interesting methods to achieve this goal. It’ll be interesting to see if the company ends up getting into trouble because of its practices or if it is managing to walk the line.
