Java Edition Beta

Beta was the development phase that succeeded Alpha and preceded Minecraft 1.0. It was announced on Notch's blog on December 11, 2010 and released nine days later, on December 20, 2010. As well as some minor updates, the transition from Alpha saw a 50% price increase (therefore making the cost 25% off the full price), a change in the disclaimer (Notch removed the line that said "all future updates will be provided free of charge", though the statement still applies to users who bought Minecraft before Beta was released. Both Alpha and Beta buyers got the full game free of charge) and minor updates to the main website.

Features
Some of the major changes in the Beta release that tops the Alpha releases include:
 * New Minecraft logo and launcher.
 * Achievements and Statistics.
 * Server-side inventory.
 * Creative game mode.
 * Weather effects. (rain, snow)
 * Rewritten biome codes.
 * More variety in trees.
 * New lighting mechanics.
 * New graphical effects, including improved sunrise/sunset, water bubbles, explosions, and Void particles.
 * Naturally generated structures such as Strongholds, Abandoned Mine Shafts and NPC Villages.
 * New mobs including squids, Enderman, Silverfish, Cave Spider and tameable wolves.
 * New health mechanic using hunger and stackable food items.
 * New combat mechanics such as critical hits, charged bows, Experience Orbs, Sprinting and Blocking.
 * New mechanisms. (Redstone Repeaters, Note Blocks, Powered Rails, Detector Rails, Trapdoors, Pistons, Sticky Pistons)
 * New blocks and recipes, such as Sandstone and the Lapis Lazuli Block.
 * New farming elements. (Melons and Pumpkins)
 * Maps
 * Beds for skipping through the night and resetting spawn point.
 * Wool dyes.

For full changes, see Beta version history.