Microsoft has been pushing a lot of major features and changes to Edge, making it more competitive against Google Chrome and other similar Chrome-based browsers. Currently, this is only available on Edge Canary, and if you want to enable it on Mica Material in Edge Browser,
This isn’t going to drastically change the behavior of Edge, but it will make Edge Visual more integrated with Windows 11. There are hidden visuals, such as the semi-transparent blur effect and rounded corners on the tabs and address bar, which are based on the colors of desktop background images on the frame.
Microsoft Edge updated with Mica Material
Mica Material was introduced to Edge but was taken down for some time. Now, Microsoft has brought back the Mica redesign to Microsoft Edge. To get this, you need to update your Edge to version 118 or higher, which brings several changes, including the newly redesigned Bing CoPilot. The update also brings enhanced Find on Page functionality, along with Smart Screen Policies and other update controls.
A few months ago, Google also introduced Mica effects, and now it is finally expected to come to Edge. The new Mica material is infused into Edge’s title bar and toolbar, but it’s not a dynamic material. If you’re not aware, it’s an exclusive dynamic material designed to match the Windows 11 theme and desktop wallpaper. Furthermore, the Mica Material is identical to the design language used in File Explorer.
How to Enable Mica Material in the Edge Browser
It is quite straightforward to enable Mica Materials in Edge through the Edge flag on Windows 11.
- Start by updating Microsoft Edge to the latest version, v120.0.2167.0 or higher.
- Next, simply launch Microsoft Edge and type edge://flags in the address bar.
- Search for the “Show Windows 11 Visual Effects in the Title Bar and Toolbar” page.
- From the right, you will find a drop-down menu for the edge: //flags/#edge-visual-rejuv-mica flag to enable the mica effect.
- Additionally, you can also enable the “Make Rounded Task Feature” available with this flag: edge://flags/#edge-visual-rejuv-rounded-tabs.
- Then, restart Edge.
Once you have enabled “Show Windows 11 Visual Effect in Title Bar and Toolbar,” you can simply enable Mica Material in Edge Browser.
- After relaunching Edge, open Edge Settings and go to the Appearance tab.
- Now, enable “Show Windows 11 Visual Effects in the Title Bar and Toolbar (Preview)” and restart the browser.
- This will enable the Mica effect, which will be visible in the browser after a restart.
Don’t be confused with acrylic, which is more intensive. Once you have enabled both of these flags, you can change the browser’s appearance to Mica and the Rounded Tab and Address bar. Not only this but there are also improvements under the hood with the effect of the Fluent Design Language. These effects apply a slight transparency, allowing the desktop background to be blurred away.