Mozilla posts first Firefox 4 beta candidate
updated 01:10 pm EDT, Tue June 29, 2010
Firefox 4 brings performance boosts, new look
Mozilla has quietly posted the first beta candidate of Firefox 4. The Linux, Mac and Windows browser has a newly improved JavaScript engine. Interface design has taken a cue from Chrome with tabs on top, simpler preferences and other additions.
Early tests of the beta show that it's lagging considerably behind other browsers with optimized JavaScript engines, especially Safari 5 and the pre-release versions of Chrome 6 and Opera 10.6. It still supports hardware-accelerated HTML5 and is already outperforming Internet Explorer 9 previews in its current state.
As with most betas, the release is likely to have bugs and isn't as optimized as it should be when the finished version arrives. Mozilla normally has multiple betas leading up to a release candidate stage that produces a complete version.
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Joined: Feb 2006
It does seem faster than 3.6
I renamed the previous Firefox to "Firefox 3.6" and the new one to Firefox 4 beta so I can keep track of them while testing.
4 beta launches faster, and with a couple of quick tests of some websites, it does seem faster in loading websites, I'd have to get out a stopwatch or something to measure against Chrome, but really don't have time right now.