Apple Launches Safari Technology Preview, A New Browser Aimed At Web Developers

Apple today announced it’s expanding its efforts in the area of web development, with the launch of a new version of its Safari web browser, designed specifically for developers. CalledSafari Technology Preview, the company says this browser will allow developers to get an early look at upcoming web technologies in OS X and iOS, including things like the latest layout technologies, visual effects, and other developer tools.

The idea is to allow developers to more easily get their hands on these technologies and be able to experiment, then offer feedback to Apple earlier on so the company can make the necessary improvements.

Of course, Apple has for a long time offered Nightly builds of WebKit, the open source browser engine that today runs on hundreds of millions of devices and powers Apple’s Safari. However, getting access to these builds takes a bit more effort than using the new Safari Technology Preview browser. Instead, with the new browser, its updates are distributed every two weeks by way of the Mac App Store’s software update mechanism. That means it’s less hassle to run a browser that features the latest advances in web technologies, including HTML, JavaScript, CSS and WebKit.

Plus, the browser allows developers to access the latest versions of Web Inspector and Responsive Design Mode – the latter which is used to help developers build websites that work across devices, from desktop to mobile.

Other advantages this version of Safari offers over using a Nightly build is that it’s signed and validated by Apple, and it works with iCloud. The lack of iCloud support, in fact, has been a pain point for web developers who wanted to use a Nightly build as their primary browser. Now, they’ll have a different option, while still being able to use their bookmarks, access their Reading List and access the tabs they’ve opened on other devices.