Mozilla’s Firefox web browser supports native language translations since Firefox 118 in desktop and Android versions of the browser. This feature, called Firefox Translations, supports additional languages now.
One of the main distinguishing factors between Mozilla’s implementation of a translate feature in Firefox and that in other browsers is that Firefox’s runs locally.
Translations happen on the local device. All that is required for that is the downloading of a language pack for each language. Google, Microsoft, and other browser makers use cloud-based translation services. The consequence here is that information is submitted to company servers. Google and Microsoft know about the text that gets translated. Not a problem for some, but if you value privacy, you may prefer Mozilla’s implementation.
Firefox Translations improvements
Firefox Stable supported a good dozen languages up until now. These were Bulgarian, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Polish and Portuguese.
The Estonian language is added to the list of fully supported languages.
Mozilla added support for additional languages, but these are limited to being translated. In other words, Firefox cannot translate other languages into these languages yet.
The additional languages are Finish, Greek, Hungarian, Russian, Slovenian, Turkish and Ukrainian.
Support for these new languages is added remotely to Firefox, an update of the browser is not required. You should see the languages listed already on about:preferences#general under Translations.
Support for additional languages in development
Mozilla is working on adding support for additional languages to Firefox. Users who run development versions of Firefox gain access to additional languages or capabilities.
The focus is on European languages, with Persian (Farsi) being the exception.
Dev users get full access to Czech and Persian (Farsi). Additionally, support for translating Catalan, Icelandic, Lithuanian, Maltese, Norwegian (Bokmål and Nynorsk) are also available. Lastly, support for translating languages into Hungarian, Russian, and Ukrainian is also available.
Closing Words
Firefox’s translation feature supports many European languages already. Several are still missing, including Danish, Swedish, and Croatian among others.
Support for non-European languages is lacking severely at this stage. These still require the use of other translation services at the time of writing and the foreseeable future.
Now You: which translation service do you use? (via Sören Hentzschel)
Speedometer 3.0 is the latest version of the browser benchmark developed in a joint effort by Google, Apple, Microsoft, and Mozilla.
Browser benchmarks were a craze for many years on the Internet, but popularity has gone down significantly in the last years.
When Google launched Chrome, it hammered home the fact that the browser was offering better performance with browser benchmarks. It was true at the time and brilliant marketing.
Mozilla, Microsoft, and other browser makers scrambled, but they had huge troubles closing the gap to Chrome.
Today, browser benchmarks are niche again. Developers and organizations may use them, but they play little role for regular Internet users. One reason for that is that browser makers have stopped using them for marketing for the most part. And the reason for that is that the gap is not as large anymore as it was 15 years ago.
Speedometer 3.0
Speedometer 3.0 is a browser benchmark by Apple, Google, Microsoft, and Mozilla. Visit the benchmark’s website in any browser and hit the “start test” button to run it.
The benchmark runs automatically from that point on. It make take a minute or two to complete the test and a score is displayed in the end. This score depends largely on the performance of the device and the browser that you use.
Speedometer 3.0 replaces the second version of the benchmark. Apple and Google collaborated in 2018 to release it to the public.
The new iteration improves “how Speedometer captures and calculates scores” and it comes with “an even wider variety of workloads”. In essence, the developers of Speedometer have updated the workloads used to test the performance of the browser to take into account changes in the last six years on the Internet.
This means that a different set of frameworks is used in the tests. New browser and JavaScript APIs are tested, and more complex computations are run as well.
You may check out Google’s post on its Chromium blog for the company’s take on the changes. Microsoft published its take on the benchmark update here.
Closing Words
Most web browsers share a common core. This is true for all Chromium-based browsers. Performance, therefore, is nearly identical when it comes to the likes of Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, Brave, Vivaldi, or Opera. Mozilla with its Firefox web browser and Apple with its Safari browser use different engines, and results may differ more on the same machine because of that.
Unlike computer benchmarks, which may show tweaking potential, browser benchmarks come with little optimization potential. Apart from installing the latest drivers on the machine, there is little one can do to improve the performance of a browser to get better scores in benchmarks.
With that said, it is still interesting to see how your browser or system performs.
More than eight years after Mozilla decided to remove tab groups from Firefox, the organization confirmed today that tab groups will make a comeback.
When Mozilla launched Firefox’s Panorama feature, which introduced tab groups in Firefox years before Google implemented the feature in Chrome, it was ahead of its time.
Tab groups improve tab manageability by allowing users to put multiple tabs into groups in the tab bar. These groups may be collapsed to free up room on the taskbar.
While Mozilla did introduced Tab Groups before Google, it was Google that made them practicable to use.
Current implementations in Chrome and other Chromium-based browsers are easy to use. It is an elegant solution. Panorama on the other hand showed tabs of the active group only to the user.
Mozilla announced the end of tab groups in Firefox about nine years ago. The organization cited low usage, a lack of quality, and high maintenance costs.
Mozilla CEO confirms Tab Groups
This month, something remarkable happened. Firefox user Belfox published a letter to Mozilla CEO Laura Chambers. In it, they asked Chambers to consider adding a tab grouping feature to the browser.
Firefox lacks proper tab grouping support. All Chromium-based browsers support it, thanks to the shared codebase. Belfox noted that tab groups was the top requested feature on Mozilla’s Connect website.
Nothing happened for about a week, but then, Chambers replied to the user on the Mozilla Discourse website.
She wrote:
Hello! Thanks for reaching out. I have some good news! I checked in with the team, and they have prioritized the work and have a people assigned to work on it.
In other words; Mozilla’s CEO confirmed that a team is working on tab groups and that it is a development priority.
The response is remarkable. Not because of confirming that tab groups will (likely) come to Firefox. It is remarkable because it is the first time in a very long time that Mozilla’s CEO communicates directly with the community.
Not with a letter or blog post, but in a discussion.
Chambers confirmed that Firefox would become a priority at Mozilla again after taking over the reigns from Mitchell Baker. It seems that she is making good on the promise.
This direct interaction with the Firefox base could help bring management, developers, and users closer together again. It gives hopes to a community, of which no small part felt neglected in recent years.
Closing Words
Firefox is getting tab grouping support, which is good news for users of the browser. The CEO partaking in discussions about the browser and responding to user requests is even bigger than that.
Chambers remains CEO for a limited time only. A successor has not been found yet and it remains to be seen if the future Mozilla captain will follow her lead.
Microsoft announced the retirement of the Windows Subsystem for Android today. The subsystem was heralded as one of Windows 11’s upcoming features prior to the launch of the operating system more than 3 years ago.
The store allowed developers and users to run certain Android applications directly on Windows 11 machines. Microsoft partnered with Amazon to bring the Amazon Appstore to Windows 11. This limited availability of apps on Windows 11, as Google Play was not supported.
The announcement on the official Windows Subsystem for Android website offers the following information on the retirement.
Microsoft is ending support for the Windows Subsystem for Android™️ (WSA). As a result, the Amazon Appstore on Windows and all applications and games dependent on WSA will no longer be supported beginning March 5, 2025.
Microsoft ends support for the Amazon Appstore and all apps and games that depend on the Windows Subsystem for Android on March 5, 2025. Windows 11 users who installed Android apps or games on their devices will have continued access to these through March 5, 2025.
Installations of the Amazon Appstore are still available at the time of writing. Microsoft Store will prevent installations starting March 6, 2024.
Microsoft offers no reason for the deprecation of the feature. Windows Subsystem for Android was available in a few dozen countries only including the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, and Japan. The feature had specific system requirements on top of that: a 64-bit processor, virtualization support, 16 GB of RAM and a Solid State Drive. The last two requirements were recommended but not enforced.
The deprecation of the entire Windows Subsystem for Android puts an end to any Microsoft Store application that used it to install Android apps on the Windows device.
The last update of the Windows Subsystem for Android was released less than a year ago. It introduced file sharing capabilities between the subsystem and the Windows 11 host machine.
Alternatives to the Amazon AppStore
One alternative that continues to work for developers and users is BlueStack. It is a third-party solution that focuses on bringing Android games to PC. BlueStack claims that it offers more than 2 million Android games to PC players.
Google launched Google Play Games recently to bring a selection of Android games to PC. The software is still in beta at the time of writing and limits games to a fraction of what is available on Google Play.
Mozilla is porting the private translations feature of the desktop version of its Firefox web browser to the Android version. The organization introduced translations support in Firefox 118. A core difference between Mozilla’s implementation and that in other browsers is that Mozilla’s runs locally.
When you use Google Translate or Bing Translate, data is transferred to Google or Microsoft servers. It is processed there and then returned to the browser.
Firefox translates webpages directly on the device. No data is transferred to Mozilla or elsewhere. In other words, Mozilla does not know the text that you want translated nor the site it is published on.
Firefox for Android: first look at translate feature
Translate is only available if Firefox Nightly for Android at the time. Even there, it is not visible right away but needs to be enabled by users.
Here is how that is done:
Select Menu > Settings.
Open About Firefox.
Tap five times on the Mozilla logo on the page until you get the notification that debug is enabled.
Go back to the main Settings page.
Locate the Secret Settings menu.
Toggle “Enable Firefox Translations” to turn the translate feature on.
A new translate icon is now displayed in the address bar when you open a foreign language page.
Tap on the icon to get options to translate the content into another language.
Firefox Translate for Android: the options
The main translate menu lists the source and the target language only. You may change those and hit the translate button to get the page translated immediately.
A tap on the settings icon displays translate options. Here you may enable “always” or “never” translate options. These are:
Always translate a specific language. When enabled, Firefox will translate the language automatically when it encounters it.
Never translate a language. Blocks translate functionality for pages in that specific language.
Never translate this site. Blocks translate functionality on the current site, but not on others.
Firefox uses local language pack for its translates. These need to be downloaded once for each language and this happens automatically when you select the translate option the first time for that language.
You may download all languages immediately in the Firefox settings. Note that this version of the translate feature supports only the four languages English, French, Italian, and German. All language packs have a size of about 28 megabytes.
Closing Words
It is unclear when the translate feature is rolling out in Firefox Stable for Android. It is likely that this is going to happen later in 2024, but Mozilla has not announced its plans yet in this regard.
Since translations happen locally, it is privacy-friendly. There is one downside at the moment: language support.
The desktop version of Firefox supports just a few dozen languages at this point. These will all come to Firefox for Android, but it may take a long time before Firefox’s translate feature supports the majority of languages.
Still, Mozilla is bringing another requested feature to Firefox for Android. This helps close the feature gap between Firefox and Chromium-based browsers. Also worth to note is that Firefox supports features that major Chromium-based browsers do not support. Extensions support is a major one.
While Microsoft is working on bringing extensions support to its Edge for Android browser, it is not there yet.
HP All-In Plan is a new subscription plan from HP. The company’s previous subscription plans focused on printer ink subscriptions. Users could sign-up for a plan to get printer ink delivered to their home before they run out of it.
Called HP Instant Ink and starting at $1.49 per month, it assigned a print quota, measured in pages, to the printer. The cheapest plan is good for 10 pages per month with the option to buy more pages if the need arises.
The most expensive plan, called Business, allows users to print 700 pages for $27.99 per month.
HP improved the plans in recent time. It expanded options to laser printers by introducing Toner Plans. The plan starts at $1.99 for 50 pages of printing per month. The most expensive plan is available for $19.99 per month.
HP added options to add paper subscriptions to the plan recently in the United States.
Now comes the HP All-In Plan, which adds the printer to the subscription.
HP All-In Plan: the facts
HP promises “hassle-free printing with the HP All-In Plan”. Basically, what HP is doing is lending subscribers a printer and providing them with ink based on the selected plan.
HP advertises 24/7 Pro live support and an option to upgrade to another printer model after 2 years.
The cheapest option starts at $6.99 for an HP Envy printer and 20 pages of printing per month. HP does not reveal which HP Envy model users get; it is possible that different models may be provided. The price of a base HP Envy printer is about $70 at the time of writing.
Two additional printer models are available. The HP Envy Inspire printer, that starts at $8.99 per month, and the HP OfficeJet Pro printer, which starts at $12.99 per month.
HP Envy Inspire printers start at about $130 and the HP OfficeJet Pro also at around the same price tag. Some models are sold for more though and it is unclear which models subscribers get.
Note that some page options are only available if a more expensive printer is selected.
The maximum price per month at this time is $35.99. This gets subscribers the HP OfficeJet Pro printer and a quota of 700 pages per month.
There is one caveat: HP wants to bind users for at least 24 months. Subscribers have to pay cancellation fees to get out of plans early. These cost almost as much as the plan for the entire 24 month period.
Here they are:
Printer
After 30 days and up to 12 months
After 12 months and up to 24 months
After 24 months
HP OfficeJet Pro Plan
$270.00
$135.00
$0.00
HP ENVY Inspire Plan
$180.00
$90.00
$0.00
HP ENVY Plan
$120.00
$60.00
$0.00
If you cancel after the 30-day trial period but in the first year, you pay between $120 to $270 to HP to cancel the subscription.
The fee drops to $60 for the HP Envy plan and $135 for the HP OfficeJet Pro plan in the second year. It becomes free only after the first 24 months of subscription.
Is HP’s All-In Plan worth it?
It is simple math for the most part. How much does it cost to buy one of the listed printers and printer ink, and how does it compare to HP’s subscription service?
Buying a cheap HP Envy printer sets you back about $70. It does come with some ink to get you started right away. If you buy HP printer ink, you pay about $40 for a package with black and color ink. If you buy from third-party suppliers, you pay less or get more ink.
This comes at the risk of HP breaking printing though, unless you block driver updates.
The official ink is good for 200 black pages and 165 tri-color pages, which means 365 pages in total.
The cheapest HP All-In Plan gets you 20 pages per month for $6.99
The math for a 2 year period:
Cost of HP subscription plan: 24 x 6.99 per month = $167.76
Cost of buying the printer and ink: $70 + 2 x $40 for the ink cartridges = $150
Note that this does not take into account the ink that is included when you buy the printer nor the money you get when you sell the printer after two years of use.
Things to consider
HP’s offer does not look that bad compared to buying the printer and ink directly on first glance. You can reduce the costs to less than $40 for ink if you buy third-party printer ink cartridges, which increases the attractiveness of buying the printer directly.
Some things need to be considered:
HP All-In Plan allows you to use color printouts, black printouts or mix and match. The company makes no distinction between black and color printouts when it comes to the monthly ratio.
You can get a new printer after 2 years of use. If you buy yourself, you would need to buy another printer, but could potentially sell the old one for a discount.
You pay cancellation fees if you want to cancel the subscription between the second month and 24th month.
HP subscribers get support when they need it. It is unclear how good support is though.
HP subscribers will never run into problems with printer ink drying up and becoming unusable.
Only some unused pages of printing carry over into the next month.
HP monitors printing on the device and may “transfer information about you to advertising partners”. The partners may use the information to identify devices for targeted advertising. The printer needs to be connected to the Internet all the time.
There is a good chance that HP will raise the subscription price in the coming years. It has done so several times for its Instant Ink subscriptions already.
Closing Words
HP claims that its new All-In plan eliminates “the hassle of owning a printer and running out of ink”. What HP forgets to say is that it is usually not a hassle to own a printer, but to use one.
Lack of printer ink or dried up ink play certainly a role, but there are other factors. One of them is HP trying to block customers from using any ink but the company’s.
Subscriptions are often not the best option for consumers. In this case, it means subscribing for two years and paying more than you would if you would buy the printer and ink directly. It may look less of a hassle, as HP is taking care of sending the printer and ink to you, but it comes at the cost of having printing monitored by HP 24/7 and a loss of flexibility.
Vivaldi Browser, contender for the world’s most customizable desktop browser, is available as a new version. Vivaldi 6.6 is a major update for the web browser. The update improves web panels, a feature of Vivaldi that allows users to display websites in a sidebar.
A web panel may display websites, e.g., Spotify, YouTube, yours truly Chipp.in, or eBay, next to other sites. One of the main uses for web panels is to control functionality of one site or service while using others.
Other new features include mail search improvements, an interesting new overview of website permissions, and the ability to set a preferred webpage color theme.
Vivaldi 6.6 is available already. Most installations of the web browser should update automatically. Users may also download the latest installer from the official Vivaldi website.
Vivaldi 6.6: web panel improvements
Vivaldi includes a few default web panels that you may launch directly from the sidebar. There is the Wikipedia web panel, for instance, which opens Wikipedia in the sidebar. You may add custom webpages and sites as web panels for easy access.
Existing web panel users may notice the new navigation options for web panels. This makes it easier to navigate back and forward, as the browser’s default navigational items are reserved for its main website view.
The second big change in regards to web panels is that extensions work there now. This means that you may install extensions, e.g. content blockers, media players, or other extensions, and use their features there as well.
Last but not least, extension developers may use the new Side Panel extension API to add “entire new Panels” to the browser.
Central Website Permission Management
Vivaldi, being a Chromium-based web browser, already includes options to manage website permissions. These can be configured globally or individually.
Global permissions apply to all websites except for sites with custom permissions. You could disable JavaScript globally and allow it to run on some sites. Other popular permissions are autoplay of media, sound, location detection, access to the microphone or camera.
Changing custom site permissions is not a straightforward process. You have to open the site in the browser and activate the Shield icon in the address bar and select Site Settings to manage them for the site in question.
This is identical in all Chromium-based browsers. Vivaldi 6.6 introduces a centralized management interface for custom permissions.
Just load vivaldi://settings/privacy/ in the browser’s address bar and scroll down to the Website Permissions section. Note that you may also go there manually by following this path: Settings > Privacy and Security > Website Permissions.
Vivaldi lists all websites with custom permissions. Just select one and you get the option to change permissions for that site right there. Custom permissions are highlighted in color, making it easy to detect them.
Note that there is no option to set permissions for individual sites to their defaults. You may reset all of them to the defaults though using the interface.
Website Color Theme setting
Another new feature in Vivaldi 6.6 is the option to set the default color theme to dark for websites. This is independent of the theme used by the browser or the operating system’s color preference.
Vivaldi 6.6 includes the option “force a dark theme on all websites” to make sure it is used on sites, even on those that do not support dark mode.
You find the options under Settings > Website Appearance, or by loading vivaldi://settings/appearance/ directly in the address bar.
Other changes in Vivaldi 6.6
The new browser version introduces a number of other updates. Here are the most important ones:
Improved the translation quality and performance of Vivaldi’s built-in translation service.
Search in Vivaldi Mail, the browser’s built-in mail client, includes advanced search options now. New filters displayed underneath the search field allow users to narrow down results, e.g., by limiting search results to a specific account or the email subject.
Import and export data from Vivaldi Notes and Reading List now.
Closing Words
Vivaldi 6.6 is a major update for the browser. It introduces several improvements for users of the browser. Notable are the permissions management interface to control custom permissions from a central page, extensions support in web panels, and the new dark mode option for websites. Vivaldi Mail users get improved search options on top of all that.
Microsoft is working on a new accessibility feature in Windows 11 that it calls Speak for Me. Here is what it does: the main idea behind the accessibility tool is to have text that you type spoken aloud using either integrated voices or your own.
Twitter user Phantom spotted the integrated feature in Windows 11 build 26063. It is not enabled by default in the build, but interested users may enable it using ViVeTool.
Here are the required steps to unlock it:
Download the latest ViVeTool release from GitHub.
Extract the archive to the local system.
Open an elevated command prompt, e.g., by opening Start, typing CMD and selecting “run as administrator”.
Navigate to the ViVeTool directory.
Run the command vivetool /enable /id:44950080,47123936,47405131,47976395,48002155,48339425,48624087,48812316,48900033
Restart the system.
Speak for Me should now be accessible via Settings > Speak for Me.
Toggle the Speak for Me preference to On to enable the feature. The keyboard shortcut Windows-Ctrl-T turns the assistive speech feature on and off then.
Windows 11 gives you two voice options: pick a natural voice that is provided by the operating system or use your own voice. Using your own voice requires giving Microsoft permission to record the voice.
Note all Windows 11 users may like the idea. Those who do not, may want to pick natural voice instead. Once you have given Microsoft permission, you need to read phases and sentences aloud. This takes some time, but progress is saved.
Microsoft uses your voice data then to create a personal voice. This takes about 2 hours according to Microsoft. The company promises that it will inform users once the voice is ready for use.
Use the keyboard shortcut to display the interface. It opens a text field. Anything you enter there may be read aloud using the selected voice.
Closing Words
The option to create a personal voice is interesting. Microsoft has not revealed plans to extend the feature, but it is just a small step to integrating a user’s recorded voice as one of the available voices on Windows.
This would allow Windows 11 users to use the voice in Narrator and other areas of the operating system.
Speak for Me is an interesting feature, but it is limited at this point. Microsoft has not said anything about the target release for the feature. Windows 11 version 24H2, or Windows 11 2024 Update, is the most likely target at this point
NVIDIA unveiled the NVIDIA App yesterday. The new application is available as a beta release at the time of writing. It promises to unify functionality that NVIDIA’s current generation of programs offer.
The company plans to replace these programs, notably GeForce Experience, NVIDIA Control Panel, and RTX Experience, with this one in the future.
The public beta of the NVIDA app is available already. It does not include all features yet. NVIDIA notes in the announcement that it does include “many of the top features” from the existing apps already.
NVIDIA App system requirements
The beta application is compatible with Windows 10 and 11 operating systems only at the time. It requires 600 MB of disk space, 2 GB of RAM, and the GeForce 551.52 or later driver.
The app has the following CPU and GPU requirements:
GPU:
GeForce RTX 20, 30, and 40 Series GPUs
GeForce GTX 800, 900, 1000, 1600 Series GPUs
GeForce MX100, MX200, MX300, 800M, and 900M GPUs
CPU:
Intel Pentium G Series, Core i3, i5, i7, or higher
AMD FX, Ryzen 3, 5, 7, 9, Threadripper or higher
The NVIDIA App: functionality
One of the core features of the app is the discovery and installation of drivers and related NVIDIA software. It allows users to install the latest graphics card driver on their devices and also other NVIDIA software, including GeForce NOW or NVIDIA Broadcast.
Driver releases provide summaries of new features and fixed issues. These help users find out more about a release without having to read the full documentation.
All driver related articles are accessible from a single entry point in the NVIDIA app.
The NVIDIA App introduces a new game overlay, which provides access to “gameplay recording tools, performance monitoring overlays, and game enhancing filters”. Filters include new filters powered by AI, but these are limited to GeForce RTX users and about 1200 games at the time.
Filters like RTX Dynamic Vibrance or RTX HDR promise to improve the visual quality of games using AI.
Microsoft is also working on integrating AI into Windows to improve graphics. Called Super Resolution, it promises to improve performance and visuals of games on Windows devices.
Gamers get a new performance overlay, which they may customize. They may add or hide certain performance metrics in the new software.
There is also the new GPU Control Center. This allows users to tune games and driver settings from a single location. Customizations support making global changes and also specific changes to specific applications or games.
Other options include signing-in to redeem bundles and rewards. NVIDIA says that this is optional.
The future
NVIDIA is working on integrating features of the NVIDIA Control Panel that are not yet available in the NVIDIA App. The new app will also get features from GeForce Experience and RTX Experience. These include GPU overclocking and driver rollback options.
The classic NVIDIA programs remain available throughout the beta period. NVDIA appears to have plans to drop support for these apps eventually, but has not yet announced an end of support date.
Some features won’t make the cut. NVIDIA lists Broadcast to Twitch and YouTube, Share Images and Video to Facebook and YouTube, and Photo Mode 360 & Stereo captures specifically.
Closing Words
The new application promises to unify NVIDIA’s offerings for Windows. It is too early to say how good it really is at this point. It should be clear that it will include Telemetry as well. NVIDIA will likely continue to release standalone drivers for its graphics cards.
A recent Microsoft Edge update changes the browser’s sidebar functionality to the worse. Up until now, Edge users could disable the Copilot button that triggers the sidebar entirely. Now, when Edge users disable Copilot’s icon and thus the sidebar icon in the Edge toolbar, they get another button.
This one, a generic sidebar button, cannot be removed anymore. There is no option in the preferences to hide the button. Whether that is a case of “introduce a feature and add an option to customize it later on” remains to be seen.
Edge users may also notice that the Copilot button activates the AI chat interface now on hover. This behavior cannot be turned off either.
Note that there is a workaround which requires making a change to the Windows Registry.
Update: Microsoft added a new preference in Edge 122 that allows you to disable the sidebar button. Load edge://settings/sidebar to get there and toggle “show sidebar button” to off to remove it from the toolbar of the browser.
The new Edge sidebar button
If you disable Copilot in Microsoft Edge, you get the new Edge sidebar button instead. The fastest way to disable Copilot in Edge is to load edge://settings/sidebar in the browser’s address bar to load the Customize Sidebar preferences.
Select Copilot on the page to display the preferences for the AI. There you find the “Show Copilot” option to turn it on or off.
Good news is that the generic sidebar button does not open on hover. Bad news is, that there is no switch in the preferences to disable it.
How to hide the new Edge sidebar button
If you do not use Copilot nor the sidebar in Microsoft Edge, then you may follow the steps below to turn off the generic sidebar button in Edge after you have disabled Copilot.
First, to disable Startup Boost:
Open Microsoft Edge.
Select Menu > Settings > System and Performance.
Turn off Startup Boost.
Close Microsoft Edge.
Then, add a new value to the Registry to turn off the sidebar icon:
Open the Start Menu on the Windows system.
Type regedit.exe and select the Registry Editor result.
Confirm the UAC prompt by selecting “yes”.
Use the hierarchical structure on the left side to go to Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Edge
If a key does not exist along the way, create it with a right-click on the previous key and the selection of New > Key from the context menu.
Right-click on Edge and select New > Dword (32-bit) Value.
Name it HubsSidebarEnabled.
Close the Registry Editor.
Restart the system.
Note: you can also kill the explorer.exe process and restart it in the Task Manager.
There is no sidebar icon anymore in Microsoft Edge on the next start of the web browser.
