Chrome design wins the browser battles? Internet Explorer 9 leaks show influence of minimal Chrome

The new interface for Internet Explorer 9 will look very like Google Chrome judging by leaks from Russian Microsoft. The new Internet Explorer will be out in 20 days and a hastily withdrawn demo page (above) showed us some of its new design.

It seems that Chrome design features are winning out in the battle of the browsers. That means the new Internet Explorer will shift to much more minimal interface: clean lines, the book marks hidden and the menu options stripped right back.

Microsoft have overcome their fondness for menu options by reducing the six menu options on Internet Explorer to just one and there’s a combined search and address bar (as with Google’s Chrome).

Copying good stuff other people have done is usually a sensible descision and Microsoft have a lot of ground to pull back in the browser wars. We’re not sure they’re going to actually draw people back by releasing a slicker Internet Explorer, but they might stop some people leaving. Internet Explorer is still the largest browser by market share but their lead is being steadily eroded by both Firefox and Chrome.

Other features that blog Neowin spotted before the demo site was pulled down include something whereby tabs can be ‘torn off’, and possibly ‘snapped’ via Windows 7’s Aero Snap feature. And apparently dragging a ‘pin’ from the address bar creates a link on your taskbar.

A win for clean lines…

[via neowin]