Hmm, some interesting updates. I really hope the performance is improved...its been pretty poor for a while now.
One of the features I've been asking for, and have endorsed on the feature request forums, is a REAL plugin API. The way plugins work now, they can only work on TIFF copies. This eliminates any option for producing plugins that simply inject themselves into the RAW rendering pipeline, and work on the RAW data itself. Some edits are better done after demosaicing, however others, such as debanding and some forms of deconvolution, work best when done directly on the raw data. I really wish Adobe would implement a pluggable rendering pipeline. Would open so many doors, and streamline the process of working with plugins (they could simply become additional panels in the Develop module.)