Apple Releases Safari Technology Preview 129 With Bug Fixes and Performance Improvements

[MacRumors]

Apple today released a new update for Safari Technology Preview, the experimental browser Apple first introduced in March 2016. Apple designed the Safari Technology Preview to test features that may be introduced into future release versions of Safari.

Safari Technology Preview release 129 includes bug fixes and performance improvements for Web Inspector, CSS, Scrolling, Rendering, WebAssembly, Web API, Platform Features, IndexedDB, Media, WebGL, and WebCrypto.

Apple says that on macOS Big Sur, this release requires enabling the GPU Process: Media option from the Experimental Features setting in the Develop menu. Turning on the option addresses issues with streaming services.

The current Safari Technology Preview release is built on the new Safari 15 update included in macOS Monterey, and as such, it includes several Safari 15 features. There's a new streamlined tab bar with support for Tab Groups to organize tabs, along with improved support for Safari Web Extensions.

Live Text allows users to select and interact with text in images on the web, but the macOS Monterey beta and an M1 Mac is required. There's also Quick Notes support for adding links and Safari highlights to remember important information and ideas.

Other updates include WebGL 2 and new HTML, CSS, and JavaScript features.

The new Safari Technology Preview update is available for both macOS Big Sur and macOS Monterey, the newest version of the Mac operating system that's set to release this fall.

The Safari Technology Preview update is available through the Software Update mechanism in System Preferences to anyone who has downloaded the browser. Full release notes for the update are available on the Safari Technology Preview website.

Apple's aim with Safari Technology Preview is to gather feedback from developers and users on its browser development process. Safari Technology Preview can run side-by-side with the existing Safari browser and while designed for developers, it does not require a developer account to download.

Article Link: Apple Releases Safari Technology Preview 129 With Bug Fixes and Performance Improvements

 

[pythagorasuk]

Im just getting installation failed error.

 

[adamw]

Speed improvements and bug fixes are always welcome.

 

[whirldy]

would be nice to have available in iOS/iPadOS, and an eventual browser in tvOS !!!

 

[hazemam]

Looks like they removed the option to use the new combined layout for tab bar. The tab bar is always separate in this release.

 

[hazemam]

For people with video/audio issues from last release, they mention this in the notes:

Note: On macOS Big Sur, this release requires enabling GPU Process: Media option from Experimental Features under the Develop menu to address issues with streaming services.

 

[jabbr]

it's still in the preferences under Tabs.

 

[ericfroemling]

Looks like they removed the option to use the new combined layout for tab bar. The tab bar is always separate in this release.

It looks like it's just been moved to Preferences -> Tabs instead of being under the View menu.

 

[hazemam]

it's still in the preferences under Tabs. View attachment 1814738

It looks like it's just been moved to Preferences -> Tabs instead of being under the View menu.

Ooh that makes sense, that’s good news.
Weird thing is that my setting was reset after updating, since I was using the compact.

 

[jabbr]

Weird thing is that my setting was reset after updating, since I was using the compact.

Yeah, makes we wonder if they will completely ditch the idea upon release. I hope not... I like the little bit of extra vertical space.

 

[justperry]

"This release requires enabling the GPU Process: Media option from the Experimental Features setting in the Develop menu."

Can't find this.
I have an unsupported 2012 Mac Mini with Monterey on it, Safari causes kernel panics in the last beta, especially on sites with a lot of moving media content, most likely due to the internal Intel HD4000 Graphics.
Open a page like CNN for instance, the page will reload after 10-15 seconds, then again, then crashes the system.

 

[LeadingHeat]

Live Text allows users to select and interact with text in images on the web

I’m so excited for this. I love the power of the M1!! 16 cores for just the neural engine. I hope this is just the beginning of how they tap into that raw potential.

 

[diamondsw]

Am I the only one who uses the Favorites Bar? It looks really bizarre being under the tab bar now.

 

[CPx]

This update seems to be working a lot better than the last one. And thank you for pointing out the tip about GPU Process: Media!

 

[glhaynes]

Are anybody's Tab Groups syncing? I note that the release notes have the below removed versus the previous version, but they're still not syncing for me.
Note: Tab Groups do not sync in this release.

 

[quaresma]

I really want to use Safari but no chromium engine kills it for me. I'm not saying you should use Chrome, just a chromium browser: Brave, Edge etc. Firefox is slow on some sites, while chromium browsers are fast. Also Chrome is not the battery enemy it used to be. Lots of improvements the last couple of months

 

[kdekorte]

Am I the only one who uses the Favorites Bar? It looks really bizarre being under the tab bar now.View attachment 1814765

I use the favorites bar all the time.. that is actually where I keep my bookmarks...

 

[aardwolf]

"This release requires enabling the GPU Process: Media option from the Experimental Features setting in the Develop menu."

Can't find this.
I have an unsupported 2012 Mac Mini with Monterey on it, Safari causes kernel panics in the last beta, especially on sites with a lot of moving media content, most likely due to the internal Intel HD4000 Graphics.
Open a page like CNN for instance, the page will reload after 10-15 seconds, then again, then crashes the system.

It was already selected in your second screenshot. It's alphabetical.

 

[abhibeckert]

Am I the only one who uses the Favorites Bar? It looks really bizarre being under the tab bar now.View attachment 1814765

I get to favourites by clicking the url bar (a new feature in the redesigned safari).

 

[entropys]

I only want to know is there the ability to prevent auto play of video content when you visit any website?

 

[abhibeckert]

I really want to use Safari but no chromium engine kills it for me. I'm not saying you should use Chrome, just a chromium browser: Brave, Edge etc. Firefox is slow on some sites, while chromium browsers are fast.

And every test I've ever seen shows Safari browsers are faster. As someone who uses both, that's been my experience too. It's a noticeable difference.

Also Chrome is not the battery enemy it used to be. Lots of improvements the last couple of months

Forbes ran an article from earlier this year showing Chrome with an "Energy Impact" number 10x higher than Safari. It also mentioned the test device (M1 MacBook Pro) gets warm running Chrome but stays cold with Safari... which means Chrome is likely pushing the CPU hard enough that it will drop the clock speed to manage temperatures on some hardware. When that happens it will start getting *really* slow (I'm guessing this is why Chrome feels noticeably slower than Safari for me).

I'm sure Chrome has improved, they're working on it continuously, but I doubt it's improved that much.

And Safari isn't sitting still either. Safari 15 is even faster and uses less power than Safari 14.

 

[tosbsas]

still get error with Netflix - supposedly html 5 error. I enabled the gpu thing

 

[chucker23n1]

The release notes no longer say that tab groups don’t sync.

But, it looks like tab groups don’t sync.

 

[tosbsas]

Fixed the Netflix error - was an extension - PiPifier

 

[Silverlox]

Im just getting installation failed error.

Same here, running Monterey beta though, is that the problem?