Mozilla has released the first public preview of its mobile browser and has offered it for download in different versions tailored for PC and Mac users.

Currently it has been pitched as an “early developer release” and the company aims to receive feedback from its users.

The new browser which has been code named as “Fennec” includes touch screen support along with tabbed browsing interface.

Incidentally the name “Fennec” traces its origin to the small Fennec fox which thrives in the Sahara desert and is characterised by its huge ears.

Some of its other notable features include an advanced pop up blocker, a password manager and it plans to include geolocation in its later versions.

Fennec retails many elements of the Firefox 3 such as its characteristic address bar; however a major improvement includes the address bar doubling up as search bar similar to what has been noticed in Google Chrome.

Despite it being very early in the testing stages, the Fennec browser is already showing major performance gains.

Interestingly Mozilla’s foray into the mobile market comes quite late in day with Apple Safari and Opera Mobile already having a strong presence in this domain.

Mozilla is clearly serious about bringing the full power of Firefox to multiple mobile platforms. The open source web browser is evolving quickly and could soon be a serious competitor to Opera Mobile on Windows Mobile devices.

Although Firefox enthusiasts may be tempted to try out Fennec now, they should be warned that much of the new browser’s functionality isn’t seen via the UI just yet - it’s all very much still “under the hood.”