While the big news is the product’s actual launch, developers will also likely be interested to learn what’s shipping in the debut version, out today. (The Technology Preview version will feature a purple icon to differentiate it from the shipping version.)

In addition, Safari Technology Preview is a standalone application, meaning it can run side-by-side with the shipping version of Safari, to make it easy to switch between the two builds. 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. 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. 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. 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. That means it’s less hassle to run a browser that features the latest advances in web technologies, including HTML, JavaScript, CSS and WebKit. Instead, with the new browser, its updates are distributed every two weeks by way of the Mac App Store’s software update mechanism. However, getting access to these builds takes a bit more effort than using the new Safari Technology Preview browser. 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.

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.

Called Safari 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. 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.

Download safari technology preview