Internet Explorer 9 racked up 2.35 million downloads in first day: Microsoft

Internet Explorer 9 is off to a strong start, Microsoft reps announced today.

Internet Explorer 9 – the next-generation iteration of Microsoft's popular Web browser – was downloaded 2.35 million times in the first 24 hours after its Monday release, Microsoft announced today. To look at it another way, IE9 was downloaded 27 times a second.

"We want to thank everyone around the world for downloading IE9 and the enthusiastic reception," Ryan Gavin, Microsoft's Senior Director for Internet Explorer Business and Marketing, wrote on the official Internet Explorer blog. "2.3 million downloads in 24 hours is over double the 1 million downloads we saw of the IE9 Beta and four times that of the IE9 RC over the same time period." Fair enough.

But how do those download numbers stack up against other browser launches?

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Well, over at PC World, Ian Paul cautions some equanimity. "The beta version of IE9, by comparison, was downloaded 10 million times in its first six weeks of availability, but only one million times in its first 24 hours," Paul writes. "Microsoft won't be setting any records with IE9's initial download numbers, however, considering Firefox 3 in 2008 was downloaded more than 8 million times in its first day."

Internet Explorer 9 has been received warmly by critics, who have praised the speed of the revamped browser – and the lack of clutter. "If you've stopped using Internet Explorer because of speed problems or a tired-looking interface, you should give IE9 a try... it's hard to argue against a faster, cleaner-looking browser with a host of other nice extras," writes Preston Gralla of Computerworld.

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