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Among the new features Kestrel implements a colour-coded security notification scheme, which fills the address bar green when it encounters a site using an Extended Validation (EV).

The speed dial feature is also handy, allowing users to select nine thumbnail bookmarks which appear every time a new tab is opened.

It also allows users to search their browsing history by the content of the page, rather than simply by address, meaning that typing

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in a keyword you remember from the page will usually be enough to find it again.

The latest version of Kestrel also reduces the resource drain when the browser is being used as a BitTorrent client, one of a number of performance enhancements that include greater support for Microsoft's Silverlight and faster page rendering.

Kestrel is among a number of betas bubbling away nicely, with Firefox 3 beta 5 and Internet Explorer 8 beta 1 receiving a great deal of scrutiny from the tech media, with varying results. Apple's Safari 3.1 for Windows has also been in the news recently, though not necessarily for the right reasons.