Apple Inc.'s latest iPhone went on sale Friday, drawing strong initial interest from buyers with sold-out pre-orders for some models and queuing outside stores.
06.09.2023 - 17:03 / pcgamer.com
Windows users in the EU could finally and fully be set free from Microsoft's Edge browser. According to The Verge, Edge can be entirely ditched as the default browser for every and all operations in the latest dev builds of Windows 11. At least, it can be for builds configured for EU countries.
It's always been possible to install whatever browser you fancy on Windows, of course. But with Windows 10, Microsoft got a bit pushier in promoting its own Edge browser. In practice, that meant Edge popped up whenever you hit hyperlinks in widgets or Start Menu searches, regardless of the browser configured as the default.
That has carried through to existing retail builds of Windows 11. However, release notes for developer builds now indicate a change of policy which would see Windows 11 builds for EU territories respect default browser configuration for all actions, including widget and Start Menu search result links.
«In the European Economic Area (EEA), Windows system components use the default browser to open links,» the note says. So, strictly speaking, the change would apply to the EEA, which is a purely economic superset of the EU and contains three countries which aren't full EU members, rather than the EU. But anyway, the net result would be that you can entirely avoid using Edge.
The Verge asked Microsoft why the change only applies to EU / EEA territories, but Microsoft apparently declined to comment. The change is likely related to Microsoft's ongoing difficulties in the EU involving anti-trust investigations into Microsoft's bundling of Teams and Office software with Windows.
The EU has a track record of jumping on any such practices that it sees as anti-competitive. So, this could be Microsoft either heading off a specific challenge regarding the implementation of Edge in Windows as the EU’s Digital Markets Act comes into effect in March 2024 and tightens anti-trust regulations. Or it could just be Microsoft trying avoid any chance of future litigation, even if a complaint hasn't actually been lodged and the new legislation doesn't explicitly dictate a change.
Either way, if Microsoft does implement this change for future full releases of Windows 11 in the EU it will only make the forced use of Edge, at least for some operations, for non-EU builds of Windows seem even more conspicuous and egregious.
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Of course, authorities in countries like the US and UK have the power to dictate that Windows fully respects default browser settings. In the US, anti-trust authorities arguably tend to tilt the
Apple Inc.'s latest iPhone went on sale Friday, drawing strong initial interest from buyers with sold-out pre-orders for some models and queuing outside stores.
Baldur’s Gate 3 has been a standout title this year and continues to be enjoyed by players doing new playthroughs or jumping on the bandwagon and experiencing it for the first time. One of the best parts of the game is the companions you meet on the way, and thanks to Larian Studios, we are about to see them all in a whole new way.
One game based on has been impossible to play since shortly after its original release, but things have finally changed in a major way. Following the financial success of, the follow-up film was poised to be a hit, and its American distributor Warner Brothers committed heavily to advertising. An in-browser game was developed as part of this strategy, with millions being invested in a major marketing gimmick. Dubbed the game was faced with the very unusual problem of being a little bit too successful to work out.
The core cast of Baldur's Gate 3 will reunite for a special one-shot Dungeons & Dragons livestream this week.
The entire core cast of Baldur's Gate 3 will come together to role-play their own characters in what I can only describe as the ultimate D&D session.
Even if you’ve only just started your fourth Baldur’s Gate 3 play-through, you still might be craving more of the game’s captivating characters. The actors behind those voices have been pretty active on social media, reciting memes in character and what not. Now they’re taking the immersion to a whole new level and joining actual play D&D series High Rollers for a special livestream event.
By Jay Peters, a news editor who writes about technology, video games, and virtual worlds. He’s submitted several accepted emoji proposals to the Unicode Consortium.
Starfield was comfortably No.1 across Europe during its launch week, GSD data shows.
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Belgium said on Thursday it would review potential health risks linked to Apple's iPhone 12, raising the prospect that more European countries might ban the model after France ordered a halt to sales due to breaches of radiation exposure limits.
PC case maker Phanteks is pushing back against allegations that the company copied a fan design approach from rival vendor Lian Li.
The core cast of Baldur's Gate 3 are back together, causing raucous speculation among players.