Vertical tab search is gone

[pumpichank]

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Description of the issue: tab search missing w/vertical tabs
How can this issue be reproduced?

1. Install Brave 1.82.161 (Official Build) (arm64) on macOS 15.6.1

2. Use vertical tabs, collapse the tabs

3. Click on the tab expand button. This used to provide a tab search text field, but that no longer exists

Expected result: A text area to search your open tabs

Brave Version( check About Brave): 1.82.161

Additional Information:

There is now no way to search your tabs. There’s also some regression in the way tabs expand and hide, related to “Expand vertical tab panel on mouseover when collapsed”. When not hovering, the tabs panel fails to minimize.

[Mattches]

You can use the general Tab search button for this. It is placed here by default:

You can enable/disable this button in Settings --> Appearance --> Customize your toolbar.

You can also assign the desired shortcut key for this button in brave://settings/system/shortcuts

[Saoiray]

@Mattches

You can use the general Tab search button for this.

To be fair though, it used to be over along with the tabs. I guess is more convenient and logical. It’s too bad it can’t be dragged over. Or have it reposition itself when people go vertical, to align more with that format.

[pumpichank]

@Saoiray

To be fair though, it used to be over along with the tabs. I guess is more convenient and logical. It’s too bad it can’t be dragged over. Or have it reposition itself when people go vertical, to align more with that format.

Yeah, it seems like a UX regression to take it out of the tab reveal button, but at least it’s fairly minor in that tab search is still possible. Thanks for the hint!

Unfortunately, icons in the top toolbar can’t be rearranged, despite the message:

To rearrange buttons on the toolbar, drag them

At least, it doesn’t work for me.

The items in the sidebar can be rearranged.

[pumpichank]

@pumpichank

icons in the top toolbar can’t be rearranged

I take that back, they can be rearranged, but only slightly. E.g. it’s possible to move the tab search to the right of the download button, but it’s not possible to move the tab search button all the way left, e.g. next to the reload button.

[BrewAZ]

Agreed, wish they’d put it back! (Windows Desktop here)

Why’d they ‘fix’ something that wasn’t broke.

[radarrab]

I already have ten (at this point) extension icons on the right, and having the tab search over there makes no sense. I also don’t like that in Settings, the search icon is on the right and then the text entry is on the left. Google is bad enough on my phone, adding steps to get to menu items that used to be one click. I REALLY dislike having to click multiple things in order to get something simple done.

[wickathou]

bring back the search button on vertical tabs…

[pumpichank]

Shift-Command-A (on macOS) does make the change a little easier to manage. I sure wish the tab selection drop down wouldn’t disappear though when I delete a tab using that UI. I often try to use that to remove duplicates.

[jscheel]

Definitely agree that it would be a good UX win to get the tab search closer to the tabs when using vertical tabs.