Microsoft tests "PDF Reflow" feature in Edge on Android

Following a recent update, Microsoft is now testing an interesting new feature called “PDF Reflow” in Edge Canary on Android. The feature, hidden behind a flag, will further improve the PDF viewing experience by adjusting the layout to fit the screen on mobile devices.

PDF Reflow is a feature originally associated with Adobe Acrobat DC. It makes it easier to read PDFs on mobile devices without the need for zooming or horizontal scrolling.

According to Adobe Acrobat, “You can reflow a PDF to temporarily present it as a single column that is the width of the document pane. This reflow view can make the document easier to read on a mobile device or magnified on a standard monitor, without scrolling horizontally to read the text.”

The PDF Reflow support flag description reads, “If enabled, users will have access to the PDF Reflow feature.”

How to enable PDF Reflow feature in Edge on Android

1. Launch the latest Edge Canary.
2. Visit edge://flags.
3. Enable “PDF Reflow Support”.
4. Relaunch Edge.

Open any PDF and watch as the Edge PDF Viewer does its magic.

Just a heads-up: The feature flag has just been added with the new Canary update, so it might take a bit for everything to work.

For those of you familiar with Adobe Acrobat DC, you know that you need to navigate to View > Zoom and select “Reflow” to activate it.

It’s worth noting that recently, Microsoft has partnered with Adobe to improve the PDF experience in Edge PDF Viewer on desktops by using the Adobe engine. We are not sure if they are expanding this to mobile, or to Edge on Android.

Recently, Microsoft has been redesigning Edge settings on Android, allowing users to move the address bar to the bottom. Additionally, the PDF viewer has been revamped with the ability to print, download, and search within pages.