Mozilla has just released the third beta release of Firefox 4.0. As discussed in our earlier posts, Firefox 4.0 is a major stepup for the popular open source browser. It introduces a host of new features like WebM video support and improved Windows 7 integration, besides featuring a completely revamped skin.
The latest beta adds touch support on Windows 7. This is a big deal as Windows 7 is expected to be used in several upcoming tablet devices. Firefox 4 now supports multi-touch gestures, which can also be leveraged by touchscreen optimised web applications.
It’s an open secret that Firefox has been struggling to keep up with the likes of Opera and Chrome, when it comes to rendering speed. In fact, even Internet Explorer 9 performs significantly better than Firefox in artificial JavaScript rendering benchmarks. Beta 3 includes a a new way of representing values in JavaScript that should make number crunching more efficient.