Apple launched the public beta version of version 4 of its Safari Web browser this week and independent lab tests just in show it’s the fastest thing out there at the moment.

Venerable tech Web site ZDNet reports that Safari 4 is a ‘staggering’ 42 times faster rendering Javascript than Interent Explorer (IE) 7 and somewhat less faster (but still faster) than Firefox 3, Opera 9.6 and Google’s Chrome.

According to the official launch news release…

Innovative new features that make browsing more intuitive and enjoyable include Top Sites, for a stunning visual preview of frequently visited pages; Full History Search, to search through titles, web addresses and the complete text of recently viewed pages; Cover Flow, to easily flip through web history or bookmarks; and Tabs on Top, to make tabbed browsing easier and more intuitive.

Safari 4 is a public beta for both Mac OS X and Windows and is available immediately as a free download at www.apple.com/ca/safari.