Opera desktop preview brings web clipping and other tools, splits from Opera Mail

Opera for desktops may be a couple of steps behind the recently finalized Android version, but it's coming along nicely. A preview build of the now WebKit-based browser (or, technically, Blink-based) is available to try on Windows and Mac with a bunch of features which in some ways look similar to other browsers and add-ons, but which also do things a bit differently:

• Speed Dial -- a home tab that brings large tiles and folders for quick access to favorite sites

• Stash -- a web clipping tool that follows a similar big-tile aesthetic (shown above)

• Smartbox -- a search box that not only predicts what you're looking for but also offers to hunt for it on different search engines, such as Google or Twitter.

One thing you won't find is an integrated Opera Mail client, since that's been split from the desktop browser (due to "popular demand") and is now available as a release candidate for a forthcoming standalone product. You'll find full download linkage below.