Opera has released a new beta version of its upcoming Opera 9 web browser. The new version includes support for small programs called Widgets and integrates Bittorrent, the popular Peer-to-Peer downloading program. In addition, the browser has a content blocker and now can provide a thumbnail preview of all the websites that are opened.

Much like the widgets in Apple’s OS X, Opera’s widgets are small programs that can be moved around the screen and shared between users. The widgets are accessed by pressing F6. Currently there are few dozen widgets available and Opera promises that many more will appear in the future.

Bittorrent has also been integrated into the browser. Users can click on a torrent link and the download automatically starts. Previously users had to download and install a separate torrent client. Opera includes a content blocker that removes ads and images. Users are able right-click on the page and then click on "Block content". Another interesting feature is a small thumbnail of a webpage will appear when the cursor is hovered over a tabbed website.

The beta version is currently available as a free download for several operating systems including Windows, Macintosh OS X and Linux. The Windows download is just under 4.5 MB.

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Opera to integrate widgets, BitTorrent search in next browser