Opera Software today announced a beta version of Opera 7.50, a new release of its Web browser for Mac, Windows, Linux, FreeBSD and Solaris. “Today’s release marks the first time that upgrades for all desktop platforms have been released simultaneously, with Opera now bringing its Mac browser up to par,” notes the company. Opera 7.50 offers a new user interface, a built-in e-mail client (with newsgroup and RSS support), a new IRC-compatible chat feature, and more. The browser is available free of charge with a sponsored advertising banner in the top-right corner of the user interface. Users can register their version to omit the advertising banner, receive access to support and receive 6 months free use of Opera Web Mail Premium for US$29 during Opera’s special Happy Hour promotion.