Firefox 2.0 will be officially released tomorrow, but we have spotted what looks to be the official release in a newly-created directory on the Mozilla Foundation's FTP servers. This comes one week from the release of Firefox 2.0's third release candidate. The latest version of Mozilla's open source browser offers aesthetic enhancements, usability improvements, and an assortment of useful new features, including support for built-in spell-checking, phishing protection, Javascript 1.7, and session persistence. Although the new features incorporated into the upcoming release are fewer and less impressive than in previous releases, Firefox 2.0 is a solid incremental improvement over the 1.5.x series.

Hot on the heels of Microsoft's Internet Explorer 7 release, Firefox 2.0 ensures that the increasingly popular open source browser can remain competitive when compared with its newly enhanced rival. We reviewed a Firefox 2.0 release candidate earlier this month, and pointed out that renewed competition has promoted mutual innovation and a better Internet experience for all users, regardless of their browser choice.