topic Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs in Discussions

Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

AmberMeryman — Thu, 18 Dec 2025 13:04:33 GMT

Update as of December 8 - we are un-pausing this feature in Firefox Labs, as we've resolved an issue where Lists were disappearing. It's important they persist!

Hi! I’m Amber from the Firefox team.

We’re testing a new idea: simple, built-in productivity widgets on your New Tab page. They’ll be there on every new tab to keep you on-task, or on a break. (Previously available in Nightly & Beta, they are now available in Firefox Labs in Release!)

This early experiment includes:
✅ Lists - jot down your reminders, errands, or priorities for your browsing activities
⏰ Focus Timer - track your study session, deep work research, or quiet break time

And everything stays local, is never shared with Mozilla, and it’s easy to turn on and off.

Feedback is welcome to inform our next steps! Would you like to see more widgets? Which ones? Notes, Quotes, fun ones or helpful ones? Sync for optional backup? Drop your thoughts below.

- Amber & the Firefox team

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Vincent — Thu, 23 Oct 2025 13:56:02 GMT

Is this in every country? I'm on Firefox 144.0, and only see the following two entries in Labs:

Address Bar: show results during IME composition
Picture-in-Picture: auto-open on tab switch

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

AmberMeryman — Thu, 23 Oct 2025 13:57:28 GMT

This should be in every country! I believe you must re-start the browser so that you can see them in Labs? Please let us know if you're still not seeing them after that.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Vincent — Thu, 23 Oct 2025 14:05:30 GMT

Just did and am still not seeing them. Which I guess makes this a potential bug, so I reported it here to avoid distracting from actual input in this Connect thread.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

myspace — Thu, 23 Oct 2025 21:24:02 GMT

To do lists is a good one! Other widgets I'd like to see:

Daily quotes
Word of the day. Would be good for language learning.
Sports scores for my favorite teams

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Reitei17 — Fri, 24 Oct 2025 06:15:43 GMT

how about make the todo list bigger. like a days planner. im not sure how big or make it per week first. so i can fill in my daily plans for a week. The daily plan have the next and previous button to see what i done and what tomorrow's plan too. Whats in the daily plan? Can give day, time, the plan, checklist (either tick for success and x for not completing it). Most important part, sync between mobile and pc.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

AmberMeryman — Fri, 24 Oct 2025 12:17:45 GMT

Great suggestions!

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

AmberMeryman — Fri, 24 Oct 2025 12:18:23 GMT

Thanks for the feedback! Are you thinking longer, or being able to resize it even larger?

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Reitei17 — Sat, 25 Oct 2025 06:01:48 GMT

sure can be resize larger to show full week plan and resize small to just a day plan show complete day, time, plan and checklist. with prev and next button.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

mrsimon0007 — Sat, 25 Oct 2025 14:00:05 GMT

Nice update, Amber! The lists and timer are super handy. I’d love to see quick notes, quotes, or a small Pomodoro timer next. Keeping it local and private is a great move!

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

flickharrison — Sat, 25 Oct 2025 17:03:33 GMT

PLEASE just let me set the new tab page to show only my chosen bookmarks.

Mixing bookmarks with history as Shortcuts kills my focus. This is an accessibility issue, as an ADHD person I need to eliminate distractions; seeing a bunch of stuff I looked at yesterday instead of my key bookmarked sites is annoying and distracting.

In fact, I just realized how they work the other day as I was trying to delete a site from Shortcuts and it kept popping back up - because each Shortcut seemed to be a specific *page* from that site, as I deleted one, Firefox “helpfully” added a different page somewhere else in the shortcuts list. It’s like whack-a-mole in there.

It goes hand-in-hand with the search bar; I can either turn off history completely or have Firefox suggest a dozen or so history matches above my bookmarks match. So either I can’t search the history at all or it’s constantly in my way!

Why are bookmarks treated like lepers? Why is it such a priority for Mozilla to prevent bookmarks from having centre stage?

Is there some majority of users who never want to go to their bookmarks but almost always want to see the multiple pages from the site they were on two days ago?

/TEDrant

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Liz4rd — Sat, 25 Oct 2025 19:34:59 GMT

I find the timer really useful. Would be cool if it could be shown somewhere in the sidebar or something so that you could keep an eye on how much time is left without needing to open a new tab.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

LeeMorgan — Mon, 27 Oct 2025 17:01:50 GMT

It would be great if the lists persisted after restarting Firefox or PC. Unless i am missing something?

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

AmberMeryman — Mon, 27 Oct 2025 18:26:50 GMT

They definitely should persist! We have had some reports that they weren't, however.

Are you on the standard (Release) of Firefox?

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

AmberMeryman — Mon, 27 Oct 2025 18:27:58 GMT

I will pass that along!

Would it be more or less useful if we could somehow get the time remaining in the tab name? Would that be too distracting?

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

AmberMeryman — Mon, 27 Oct 2025 18:30:06 GMT

That's an interesting widget idea - easier access to bookmarks!

Have you tested the sidebar, which can include Bookmarks? That might be a good way to get easy, customizable access to them!

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

REDMARUCORY — Tue, 28 Oct 2025 00:05:59 GMT

ILOVE YUO ....AMMMMOOOOOOOOOMAHHH

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

REDMARUCORY — Tue, 28 Oct 2025 00:06:34 GMT

ILOVE YUO 2. AMMMMMMMMMMOOOOOOOAHHHHHHH

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

LeeMorgan — Tue, 28 Oct 2025 10:09:42 GMT

Hi Amber,

Yes I'm using a standard release V144 on Windows 11 25H2.

Regards, Lee

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Heath — Thu, 30 Oct 2025 06:21:51 GMT

Please add a clock widget to the collection!

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

rohankh — Fri, 31 Oct 2025 18:53:35 GMT

Initial thoughts
✅Local-only storage = perfect default
✅Lists + Focus Timer = universally useful
✅“Always in view” boosts habit building
✅Great for students, researchers, deep-work folks

This solves a problem without making users install some bloated extension. Love it.

Suggestions for future widgets

Helpful

✅Quick Notes (sticky notes style, Markdown support optional)
📎Clipboard history (local only)
✓ Habit tracker (simple checkboxes; daily reset)
📊Mini analytics: tab count, time on session, daily browsing time
🌤️ Minimal weather widget

Fun / Motivational

✨Inspirational / random quotes
🎲Fun “micro-break” widget (tiny puzzles? breathing exercise?)
🧠 Word of the day / trivia bite

Sync

Optional encrypted sync would be amazing for:

Notes
Lists
Focus history
Habit tracking

But opt-in, with “local-only” staying default — that’s key.

UX wishes

One-click hide/show
Minimal mode vs enhanced mode
Shortcut keys (e.g., N for quick note on new tab)
iOS/Android parity later (mobile notes + timer = useful)

Warning / watch-out

Don’t let the widgets become clutter or feel like forced “productivity software” — a clean, calm Firefox new tab page is core to its feel.

Keep it:
🟣 optional
🟣 minimal
🟣 privacy-first

And it's a winner.

TL;DR

Great direction.
Local-only productivity micro-tools on the new tab page = ✨
Next: notes, quotes, tiny habits, optional sync.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Mutzu — Sun, 02 Nov 2025 15:30:23 GMT

I love the timer! Could you add an additional alarm clock?

Since it's local, could you add a widget with with a vertical-bar diagram that shows the time I've spent on various social media websites? Ideally, I could add any website to it.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

rohankh — Mon, 03 Nov 2025 09:33:12 GMT

yes

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

rohankh — Mon, 03 Nov 2025 09:36:26 GMT

Alarm clock widget (local)

Purpose: simple, reliable alarm with visual indicator on the new tab page.
Requirements:
- Time set via UI (hour/minute, AM/PM or 24h).
- Label/name for the alarm (optional).
- Repeat options: once, daily, weekdays, custom.
- Local-only storage; no server calls.
- Notification: visual alert and optional sound (stored locally or browser default tone).
- Snooze option and duration (e.g., 5/10/15 minutes).
- Accessibility: keyboard accessible, concise notifications.

Vertical-bar time-spent diagram for social media

Concept: a sortable, vertical bar chart showing time spent per site during a focus session or day.
Requirements:
- User-addable site list (e.g., twitter.com, facebook.com, x.com).
- Local timer capture: detect when the active tab is on a tracked site and accumulate time per site.
- Display: vertical bars with labels, color-coded, and a total time axis.
- Reset option: daily reset or per-session reset.
- Privacy: all data stored locally; option to export anonymized data (optional).
- Limitations: due to browser security, exact background page monitoring may require permission or user interaction to start the timer (we should design it to start when the user is viewing a site in focus). Provide a fallback: manually log time blocks for sites if automatic tracking isn’t fully reliable.

Implementation plan (high level) Phase 1: Foundation

Preserve local-first architecture:
- Data model: user, widgets, presets, alarms, site-tracker, focus history, settings (localOnly, syncEnabled).
- Storage: IndexedDB or localStorage with a small library abstraction.
Core widgets baseline:
- Quick Notes with Markdown support toggle.
- Clipboard history (local only) with clipboard API permission handling.
- Habit tracker with daily reset.
- Mini analytics: tab counts, session time, daily browsing time.
- Minimal weather widget (static API-free placeholder or optional API key handling later).
- Inspirational quotes, word of the day, trivia bite.
UX groundwork:
- One-click hide/show mechanism for the new tab page widgets.
- Minimal vs Enhanced mode toggle.
- Keyboard shortcuts (e.g., N for new quick note).
- iOS/Android parity roadmap in a dedicated doc.

Phase 2: Alarm clock and site-time visualization

Alarm clock:
- UI: Time picker, label field, repeat options, sound toggle.
- Logic: alarm scheduler running in the tab context with local notifications when the page is open; fallback to periodic checks with setInterval while the page is open.
- Persistence: store in user settings; ensure alarms survive page reloads.
Social media time-diagram:
- Site registry: interface to add/edit sites (host-based matching).
- Timer logic:
  - Detect when the browser tab is active and matches a tracked site; accumulate time on focus loss/gain events.
  - Provide manual add/edit for time blocks if automatic tracking is imperfect.
- Visualization:
  - Simple vertical bar chart using CSS + lightweight SVG or canvas.
  - Hover tooltips with exact minutes/seconds.
- Export/import and reset options in a settings panel.
Privacy guardrails:
- All tracking data stored locally by default.
- Clear opt-in for any sync feature; display clear consent and data scope.

Phase 3: Polish and opt-in Sync

Optional encrypted sync:
- Implement end-to-end encryption using a user-provided key or passphrase.
- Sync scope: notes, lists, focus history, habit tracking.
- UX: clear indicator of sync status, per-feature opt-in toggle.
Performance and accessibility refinements:
- Lazy load widgets, responsive layout, keyboard navigation.
- Color themes and contrast adjustments.

Concrete next steps I can provide

A ready-to-paste feature spec you can share with a product team.
UI sketches or plain-text wireframes for the new alarm and site-time diagram.
A minimal blueprint for data schemas (in JSON-like outline) for local storage.

Quick-start templates you can use today

Alarm clock (UI concept)
- Time: [ HH:MM ]
- Label: [ optional ]
- Repeat: [ Once | Daily | Weekdays | Custom ]
- Sound: [ On | Off ]
- Snooze: [ 5 | 10 | 15 ]
- Active: [ ✓ ]
Social time tracker (sites)
- Sites: [ add site … ]
- Tracking rules:
  - If active tab host matches Site, accumulate time.
  - If user navigates away or tab is backgrounded, pause.
- Visualization: vertical bars with site name and minutes.

Questions to tailor the plan

Which browsers are you targeting first (Firefox, Chrome, Edge)? Some APIs differ slightly for background timers and notifications.
Do you want offline-only alarms (no sound) or would you like optional local sound files stored with the extension/page?
How granular should the site-time data be (per domain, per exact URL, or per site category)?
Do you prefer a lightweight minimal mode where only essential widgets load, or a fully loaded enhanced mode with all widgets visible by default?

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Mutzu — Mon, 03 Nov 2025 10:27:26 GMT

There is one major disadvantage regarding the timer (or the alarm clock): It's gone when you close Firefox.

Would it be possible to keep it in the Systray in Windows or as some background process?
I think it would also be practical to sync it with other devices like bookmarks, but let them only ring on the device you are using at the moment. 🙂

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

rohankh — Tue, 04 Nov 2025 04:44:26 GMT

Option A: Use a dedicated timer app/utility with Windows tray support

Find a lightweight timer app that:
- Runs in the system tray and persists across restarts.
- Can be started from Firefox (via URL, bookmark, or custom command) but continues ticking when Firefox closes.
- Optional: supports a “current device only” ringing if you use multiple devices.
Examples (conceptual; pick apps with these capabilities):
- Desktop timer apps that live in the system tray and can be controlled via command line or hotkeys.
- A small scripting solution (see Option D) that creates a tray icon and runs a background script.

Option B: Create a minimal background helper (Windows)

Build or use a small background utility that:
- Accepts timer requests from Firefox via a local URL, IPC, or file in a known location.
- Runs in the background and shows a Windows toast/notification when the timer ends.
- Keeps ticking even if the Firefox process ends.
How to wire it:
- Firefox extension or userscript can write a timer request to a local file (e.g., within %APPDATA%\YourTimer\requests.json) or send a local HTTP request to http://127.0.0.1:PORT.
- The helper reads the request, stores the end time, and fans notifications regardless of Firefox state.
Pros: persistence, system tray presence, reliable.
Cons: development setup, security considerations (local server openness), needs maintenance.

Option C: Use a cross-device service but focus on local ringing

Pick a cloud timer service that supports:
- Timers that can be created from any device but only trigger notifications on the active device (you’d implement “active device” by choosing which device should ring).
Implementing this yourself could be easier if you’re comfortable with a small web app and a backend (Firebase, Supabase, or a simple REST server).

Option 😧 Quick workaround with existing tools

If you’re comfortable with a quick script, you can:
- Create a small Windows script (PowerShell) that runs as a startup task and shows a tray notification when a timer ends.
- Expose a simple local API (e.g., a tiny Node.js server) to set the timer from Firefox via an extension that makes an HTTP POST to localhost.
Steps in brief:
- Write a Node.js script that:
  - Accepts a POST /set with a duration or end timestamp.
  - Uses setTimeout to wait, then shows a Windows notification (via node-notifier or built-in Windows toast).
  - Runs as a background process or as a Windows Service.
- In Firefox, use a small WebExtension or bookmarklet to POST to http://localhost:PORT/set with the desired duration.

Questions to tailor a solution

Do you prefer a Firefox-centric solution (extension-based) or a Windows-native solution (tray app/background service)?
How important is avoiding a separate app startup (i.e., would you tolerate installing a lightweight helper)?
Do you want cross-device syncing, or would per-device local timers with a shareable bookmark/URL suffice?
Are you comfortable with a small script or would you prefer a polished third-party app with support?

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Mutzu — Tue, 04 Nov 2025 13:12:34 GMT

Thank you for your suggestions, @rohankh!

Technically, I would prefer a lightweight timer app[1] running in the system tray, that could also be controlled via Firefox. I'd also favor a local file for setting the timer with Firefox instead of using HTTP.

I'd like cross-device syncing using the sync feature of Firefox. It think, it's possible to avoid any additional server services. And I'd like to manually set the device were the timer should ring.

[1]: If it's doable with a script, I would prefer that.

But maybe that's all exaggerated. 🙂

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

HeadPlug — Wed, 05 Nov 2025 20:15:16 GMT

Love the concept of the timer and to-do list, but on my laptop screen at least, after the search bar and shortcuts, there is just a small square of space left for the to-do list; this shows like 4 tasks at most.
I think it would be more useful if it were on the side, or maybe just part of the sidebar when using vertical tabs, similar to bookmarks/history

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

mnaonmf — Fri, 07 Nov 2025 13:20:49 GMT

Hi, Amber. Great idea. But items I place on the Lists widget aren't persistent across sessions. When I close and re-open the browser, my items are gone. I don't know if this behavior is by design. If it is, I for one wouldn't find much use in it. Thank you for your work and consideration.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

AmberMeryman — Fri, 07 Nov 2025 13:31:59 GMT

That should definitely not happen, but we have had reports of this bug. Do you know if you use any non-default or custom configs? It might help us nail this down!

Thank you

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

mnaonmf — Fri, 07 Nov 2025 14:10:32 GMT

Thanks, Amber. I haven’t made many non-default changes in about:config (I assume that's what you mean and not the regular Settings). The only one I’ve touched in about:config is browser.ml.linkPreview.enabled, which I turned back on after my unchecking it in Settings made the option disappear altogether (which really shouldn't have happened—it should've just unchecked).

But the disappearing list items behavior was happening even before I changed that setting, so I don’t think it’s related.

I do have a custom background (just a .png file) being used on the New Tab Page (Firefox Home), but I don't think it'd be responsible either.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

rohankh — Sat, 08 Nov 2025 18:16:04 GMT

You want a lightweight, scriptable timer that:

Runs locally (e.g., in the system tray or background).
Can be controlled via Firefox, ideally without a web service (e.g., via a local file or extension).
Syncs across devices using Firefox Sync — so no custom server required.
Lets you manually choose which device rings.
Preferably implemented as a script, not a full compiled app.
⚙️ How it could work (conceptually)
Here’s one way to realize your idea:
1. Local timer app/script
You could write a small Python or Bash script that:
- Runs in the background.
- Watches a local configuration file (e.g., ~/firefox_timer.json) for changes.
- Starts or stops a timer when the file changes.
- Shows a notification (or plays a sound) when the timer ends.
  Example (simplified Python pseudocode):
  import json, time, os from watchdog.observers import Observer from watchdog.events import FileSystemEventHandler from plyer import notification TIMER_FILE = "/path/to/firefox_timer.json" class TimerWatcher(FileSystemEventHandler): def on_modified(self, event): if event.src_path == TIMER_FILE: with open(TIMER_FILE) as f: data = json.load(f) start_timer(data.get("seconds", 0)) def start_timer(seconds): print(f"Starting timer for {seconds} seconds...") time.sleep(seconds) notification.notify(title="Timer", message="Time's up!") Observer().schedule(TimerWatcher(), path=os.path.dirname(TIMER_FILE)) Observer().start()
  
  2. Firefox integration
  You can:
  Use a Firefox extension or bookmarklet that writes to this local JSON file (Firefox can’t write directly to disk for security reasons, but…)
  You could instead sync the file via Firefox Sync bookmarks or notes — for example, a special bookmark whose title encodes the timer value.
  Example:
  Create a bookmark folder “Timers.”
  A user script or extension watches for bookmark changes in that folder.
  The timer script periodically reads synced bookmarks (using places.sqlite or the Firefox Sync API) to get the new timer command.
  It’s hacky — but clever and local.
  3. Cross-device syncing
  Firefox Sync already syncs bookmarks and extensions.
  If you store the timer configuration as a bookmark (or synced file), every synced Firefox gets the same “timer settings.”
  Then each device’s local timer script can decide:
  “Should I ring this one?” (based on a device ID field in the config file).
  4. Choosing which device rings
  You could add a "device": "laptop" field in your config file, and have only that machine respond to it.
  🧠 Alternative (simpler)
  If this feels over-engineered, you could skip Firefox and use:
  A local tray timer script (yad, zenity, or python + plyer for notifications).
  Sync the config file across devices with Dropbox, Syncthing, or Firefox Sync (if you’re already using it).
  Then the “device selection” part is just choosing which system is running the watcher.
  🔧 Tools that might help
  🐍 Python + watchdog + plyer (cross-platform notifications)
  🪟 AutoHotkey (Windows tray + file watching)
  🧠 Syncthing (for syncing a JSON config file across devices)
  🦊 Firefox extension (if you want direct browser integration)
  Would you like me to sketch out a minimal working prototype (e.g. Python script + example JSON config + optional Firefox interaction idea)?

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Mutzu — Sun, 09 Nov 2025 20:48:41 GMT

Thank you! That's all what I needed.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

mGeza — Mon, 10 Nov 2025 08:23:20 GMT

Hi,

maybe an option to have the current timer on the toolbar?

Also, maybe multiple timers? 🙂

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

mGeza — Mon, 10 Nov 2025 08:48:32 GMT

Hi,

maybe open the widgets for Extension Developers?

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

rohankh — Tue, 11 Nov 2025 17:18:40 GMT

Got it — sounds like you’re troubleshooting some odd Firefox behavior (the “disappearing list items” issue), and you’ve already done some smart detective work by checking about:config and confirming it isn’t related to browser.ml.linkPreview.enabled.

Here’s a focused rundown of what could be going on and what to try next:

🧭 Likely Causes

Custom background image: Even though it seems unrelated, custom images on the New Tab Page can sometimes trigger UI bugs, especially after recent Firefox updates.
Corrupted cache or profile data: UI elements (like list items or shortcuts) disappearing can happen if the Firefox profile cache or storage for about:newtab gets corrupted.
Experimental flags: Turning on/off browser.ml.linkPreview.enabled shouldn’t directly affect list items—but other experimental flags could indirectly cause layout shifts.
Extensions or themes: Even visual-only extensions can interfere with Firefox Home’s rendering.

🔧 Steps to Try

Test in Troubleshoot Mode
- Go to Help → Troubleshoot Mode (or type about:support → “Restart with Add-ons Disabled”).
- If the list items behave normally there, it’s an extension or theme conflict.
Reset Firefox Home settings
- Open a new tab → ⚙️ (Customize) → click Restore Defaults.
- See if your lists return and stay visible.
Clear site data for about:home
- In the address bar, type about:config → search for browser.newtabpage.activity-stream.improvesearch.topSiteRows
- If it exists, reset it to default.
- Then go to Settings → Privacy & Security → Cookies and Site Data → Clear Data → Cached Web Content (only).
Test without custom background
- Temporarily remove your PNG background and restart Firefox.
- If the issue disappears, the image or rendering layer might be causing the glitch.
Create a fresh profile
- Visit about:profiles → “Create a New Profile.”
- Launch it and check if the bug persists.
- If it doesn’t, your current profile has a corrupted storage-sync or activity-stream config.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

mnaonmf — Tue, 11 Nov 2025 17:30:49 GMT

I figured the quickest way to run the tests you mentioned was to open the default profile—I’ve never touched that one; my custom daily profile is entirely separate. That original profile is bare, no add-ons, and I’m running it on a fresh Firefox install. Oddly enough, I don’t even see the option to add widgets in that original profile.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

SurferJ — Fri, 14 Nov 2025 19:56:33 GMT

I don't see them either in 145, only address bar & picture-in-picture

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

vincentj — Fri, 14 Nov 2025 23:48:26 GMT

The only change I want on the New Tab page is for searches to STAY in the search box, not be handed off to the URL bar. The Search box should ALWAYS perform searches (even if I enter a URL or IP address.) The URL bar should ALWAYS attempt to navigate to the address entered, even if it's not a valid URL. As a developer, I consider the current behavior a massive security risk.

I have disabled the handoff setting in about:config but it does not work in private windows. This has resulted in accidentally navigating to malicious URLs that I was trying to search for, and has resulted in accidentally sending sensitive internal URLs to search engines that I was trying to navigate to. Please give us a way to separate searches and navigating to URLs.

https://connect.mozilla.org/t5/ideas/please-use-the-searchbox-but-not-the-address-bar-in-new-tabs/idi-p/4720

I don't want widgets, or weather, or recommendations, or wallpaper on my New Tab page. Just a search box that works as a search box, and some pinned sites.

Adding widgets just sounds like more bloat. Who is asking for this? I don't see "new tab widgets" in the top 10 pages of ideas. PLEASE focus on addressing long-standing issues instead of adding features that people are not asking for.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

AmberMeryman — Mon, 17 Nov 2025 13:57:39 GMT

We have uncovered the issue of persisting Lists! A fix is coming up around December 1, and I will update this Post at that time.
Thank you for reporting!!

Re: Update: PAUSED! Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Agentvirtuel — Mon, 17 Nov 2025 14:19:17 GMT

Hello

About, widgets.
For information purposes.
https://connect.mozilla.org/t5/ideas/get-weather-and-clock-built-into-the-home-screen/idc-p/110609/highlight/true#M58244

About, browser.newtabpage.activity-stream.improvesearch.handoffToAwesomebar.
Yes, under, about:privatebrowsing, it doesn't work.
https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/private-browsing-use-firefox-without-history
Always use private browsing mode or to Never remember history, it works.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

rohankh — Wed, 19 Nov 2025 19:47:12 GMT

Thanks for opening this discussion — I feel the same way. Two concrete points that make this a security and privacy issue:

Search vs navigation must be separated. A New Tab search box should always do a search; entering what looks like a URL (or IP) in that box should be treated as a search query unless the user explicitly switches to the address bar.
Private windows behave differently. A setting I changed in about:config stopped the handoff — but it still happens in private windows. That inconsistent behavior has caused me to accidentally navigate to potentially malicious or internal URLs I only meant to search for.

If it helps the devs, I put a short analysis and a reproducible example on my site (this is my website): https://inatbixindir.tr — the page summarizes steps to reproduce and a suggested UI change: keep search-box results contained to search and only let the address bar handle navigation.

Please consider adding an explicit, persistent “Search box only” mode for New Tabs (with a clear toggle), and make sure it applies in private windows too. Thanks!

Re: Update: PAUSED! Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Agentvirtuel — Thu, 20 Nov 2025 07:40:47 GMT

Hello

Ever wish you could peek at a page before you click?

Preview webpages in Firefox with link preview.
https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/use-link-previews-firefox

On-device AI models in Firefox.
https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/on-device-models

Preview link

Link preview

Ever wish you could peek at a page before you click?

Re: December update: UNpaused :) Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

KutayX7 — Sat, 13 Dec 2025 10:46:40 GMT

I got to try this feature today, and immediately tried to break it. 🙂

Here's what I found:
- While this is likely to be intentional, these widgets have a mouse hover effect while the search bar doesn't.
- List items can overflow to the right when there are very long words/numbers.
- When opening the (···) menu on the lists widget, the list quickly flickers up and down.
- You can copy paste large numbers into the minutes part of the timer. But it goes back to 98 after seconds hit 0.
- When using keyboard navigation and selecting timer minutes/seconds, they remain visually selected until you switch to another text input on the page.

OS: Kubuntu 25.10
Firefox version: 146 (flatpak)

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

hilirosi — Tue, 30 Dec 2025 11:29:02 GMT

great release

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

nerdbird93 — Tue, 13 Jan 2026 21:19:13 GMT

Hey

i do really like the Todo List, Because i use another Task app, i will use this for Browser specific short term tasks or Project based. I dont know if a simple journaling Widget, that saves date and some infos could be a nice idea. But i am not advanced in the topic of journaling.
Thank you for your work!

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

寒冰_一只草履虫 — Fri, 16 Jan 2026 12:16:19 GMT

I hope the current time can be displayed on this homepage. Then Firefox is gonna be my next screensaver!

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

MattFyrm — Sat, 17 Jan 2026 12:49:11 GMT

It would be really great if you could sync these with external tasks services like Todoist and Google Tasks

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

hippilessrich — Sun, 18 Jan 2026 00:16:04 GMT

1# i hate all widgets all they do is piss me off ! more garbage that is not wanted on my computer ! i have my menu at the top of my screen and start menu thats all i want it has everything i need and use ! stop adding a bunch of crap that only clutter up my computer , you people need to leave **bleep** alone !!!

2# focus i cant stand this app at all , if you have that much trouble focus go see a doctor ! i dont need to see this **bleep** anywhere on my computer ever !

3# lists why what is the point of this garbage more crap to fill up my computer i will never use so dont put this garbage on my computer !

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Kallocain — Sun, 18 Jan 2026 23:28:45 GMT

This has promise. Many others have already recommended other useful widgets that could be added and I have nothing more new to add there (my ideas would no doubt be costly - streaming Deezer, RSS integration with various aggregators, etc.).

My only suggestion for now is to make them drag-able so I can put them where I want them. For example, I prefer shortcuts, then stories and then widgets at the bottom for now - until I learn how useful widgets truly are in this context. Perhaps shorter, wider widgets to drag to the top of the page to the left of the weather box would be good as well should the content fit the design.

Other than that, this feature does indeed have promise. That is especially true as the options for widgets are hopefully expanded over time.

Thanks for the good work!

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

BCodec — Mon, 19 Jan 2026 15:45:02 GMT

very good feature, saved me having to open a notepad online or google timer

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

wreckognize — Thu, 05 Feb 2026 17:53:37 GMT

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

VictorC — Thu, 22 Jan 2026 21:33:17 GMT

I'd like to see widgets movable around the home screen. Maybe I want something in the top-left or bottom-right, not in the center

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

maricarmenmg — Fri, 23 Jan 2026 10:34:03 GMT

Hi, I think it's a great idea. I've been testing the focus timer. It would be great if the widget could be moved and integrated into the page.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Lako — Thu, 29 Jan 2026 15:18:10 GMT

Hi, I currenlty use the lists and really like them! Some things I noticed: It is not visible if there are more points after the end without scrolling, maybe just always display the sroll bar? Second if you dont use the timer (like me) there is no reason to not use that space for the lists either showing two or makeing long names still be one line and third currently new options are added at the top but if you add multiple todo in order of deadline the one with the longest deadline will be on top. Maybe either add an push to top / bottom options for each item or an reverse list option?

But overall I really like it 🙂

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

AshenPaladin — Thu, 05 Feb 2026 10:15:14 GMT

I like the idea of widgets - after all, if you don't want to use them you can just remove them, but ever since the update to 147.0.3 they've been regularly disappearing from my new tab page unless I go back in Firefox Labs and uncheck and then check again the box in question.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

AmberMeryman — Thu, 05 Feb 2026 13:32:05 GMT

Thank you for reporting this! I can reproduce and have asked engineering to look into it.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

AshenPaladin — Thu, 05 Feb 2026 16:36:04 GMT

Thank you for the prompt response!

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

86xsk — Fri, 06 Feb 2026 18:32:59 GMT

I think it could be useful if there was a way to associate tab groups with the task list items. For instance, one might want to create (and close) a tab group for a certain task, add a note reminding them to resume that task, and then want to bring back the tab group and resume working on it.

(Or perhaps a separate widget for a list of closed tab groups?)

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

fortiter — Mon, 09 Feb 2026 13:49:02 GMT

Interesting and useful updates! Does it provide more possibility for add-ons?

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

uerfgkuzurefb — Mon, 09 Feb 2026 21:17:43 GMT

It's a very good feature! I love it.

It have 100% to stay!

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

uerfgkuzurefb — Mon, 09 Feb 2026 21:21:11 GMT

For all of this: Just RSS feed.

I would love it!!

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

imCarol — Tue, 10 Feb 2026 18:13:53 GMT

Hi, the Labs widgets keep popping up for me all the time, and every time I have to go into the settings to disable and enable them again. I would appreciate it if you could resolve this. Thank you.🙂

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

AshenPaladin — Sat, 14 Feb 2026 21:43:25 GMT

They are apparently looking into it, here's hoping that they can fix it soon.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

asdasfag2344234 — Mon, 16 Feb 2026 10:38:24 GMT

you morons are ruining a good thing.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

AmberMeryman — Tue, 17 Feb 2026 12:47:47 GMT

This has been fixed. You may need to restart your browser to ensure the latest changes have taken effect. Let us know if it's not resolved for you!

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

jimcricket — Tue, 17 Feb 2026 13:05:58 GMT

Finicky. Once I could finally get it to appear, it suddenly disappeared. I hadn't been in any of the settings to change anything. And now I can't figure out how to get it back.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Landonmars — Thu, 19 Feb 2026 07:10:57 GMT

Lists and Timer widgets (on Firefox Home) don't persist, after restarting Firefox. One workaround, for making the widgets visible again for the duration of one session, is:

1. Settings.
2. Firefox Labs.
3. Uncheck, and then check, the "Lists and timer on Firefox Home" checkbox.
4. Open a new tab ("+ symbol"), which should now show the Lists and Timer widgets.

---
My system details:
Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 10.0; Win64; x64; rv:147.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/147.0

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

mindborne — Wed, 25 Feb 2026 10:25:21 GMT

Really appreciate this feature. If possible, add an option to align it as per requirement, left, right, center, top, bottom or free flow.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Landonmars — Thu, 26 Feb 2026 00:44:21 GMT

Lists and Timer widgets (on Firefox Home) finally persist, (after restarting Firefox). 😍 No need for workarounds now. Thank you.

Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 10.0; Win64; x64; rv:148.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/148.0

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

chipmunkcracker — Sun, 01 Mar 2026 01:12:30 GMT

I'd appreciate it if we could reposition the widgets to be off to the side (instead of under the shortcuts), especially if there aren't many of them.

Widgets I'd like to see:
- RSS (with atom support?)
- Screen time tracker, for specific websites we choose (e.g. social media sites) that would refresh each day
- Quote of the day (it would be cool if we could make our own list of quotes for it to draw from!)
- Simplified habit tracker
- White noise / nature ambiance (rain, forest sounds, etc) for enhanced focus
- Tiny retro game emulator (snake, frogger, pong, etc)

Perhaps some of those would be better off as extensions!... I'm just spitballing here.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Anonymoos — Tue, 03 Mar 2026 08:58:04 GMT

Love it !
It would be perfect if we would be able to chose between current view and full width, it is a bit small at the moment
Also, nice features would be :
- Having the chrono displayed on the top bar
- Possibility to add a tab to the task list (=> meaning that when we would click on the task it would bring us directly to the related tab)

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

dimitris42 — Fri, 06 Mar 2026 11:29:49 GMT

The timer needs to be visible outside the home tab otherwise it's not useful. also I think the notification did not work for me.
The timer should NOT be tied to a specific tab, a work session might unfold across tabs and windows.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

andrewle8 — Sat, 07 Mar 2026 09:44:48 GMT

This is great thanks!

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Artem84UA — Tue, 17 Mar 2026 10:11:37 GMT

Добрий день. Списки потрібно додати в бічну панель. Це буде набагато зручніше на мій погляд.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

metameta — Thu, 26 Mar 2026 04:59:39 GMT

Is dark mode for the “Lists” widget on the cards? It would be very helpful.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

StarlingNr1 — Fri, 27 Mar 2026 13:07:31 GMT

Would be great to be able to resize, separate and move them around so they can be anywhere on the screen!

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

robinmckenna — Tue, 31 Mar 2026 23:49:55 GMT

Hiyo! I am loving both Lists and the Timer. The simple pomodoro timer is great, love that we can adjust it.
The list is really good - I would love if we could have options for the order that tasks are entered. It currently bumps the previous one down. This option is great but for me, I like to have them appear first on top and last on the bottom, since i'm often writing down the tasks I want to do that day. I know we can re-order them after, but the option for where it's appended would be great!

I think my only other feedback would be to keep it simple without adding *too* much. I know I just asked for an option, but I think this stuff is usually better a bit stripped back where possible. (I am a settings fiddler lol)

There's an add-on called Momentum that I used to use but stopped. This has been helping my homepage feel much more zen and where I need to be! Thanks for the work on it. 🙂

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

SAMIRAN — Fri, 03 Apr 2026 02:29:48 GMT

thanks for implementing so long ,, we are wanting it ,, please don't abandon it, keep it improving , and please give it in android also

need to improve

support to android (Task sync)
implement a note taking system

and

very important please implement a full sidebar features

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

SAMIRAN — Fri, 03 Apr 2026 02:31:10 GMT

🤣fan of crome

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

cap_tech — Wed, 08 Apr 2026 09:00:37 GMT

Great little feature - can't wait till it gets introduced to the main of Firefox! I often used tools like https;//pomofocus.io for this, so I like it that it's now in Firefox. Nice to have!

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

historydev — Wed, 08 Apr 2026 09:00:50 GMT

Hi! I'd like to see:
1. Lists as separate widgets in addition to the current implementation
2. Multiple timers as separate widgets in addition to the current implementation
3. Widget hooks, such as opening/closing a tab after a timer expires
4. Customizable timer notifications, so you can specify your own notification text
5. The ability to drag and drop widgets when using multiple widgets

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

matj1 — Tue, 14 Apr 2026 07:51:01 GMT

The input field for tasks has only one short line, so, when I write something long, everything except the end fitting on the line is hidden. I suggest that the input field would expand in height to accomodate the full text of the task.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Xiuxiueig — Fri, 17 Apr 2026 21:32:40 GMT

Hi,

Nice feature!! Can you add it to the mobile version?

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

dreary-lemons — Fri, 24 Apr 2026 13:02:50 GMT

I would need this to support CalDAV to use it at all. Specifically to sync to an existing CalDAV server.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Nova29 — Sun, 26 Apr 2026 10:07:09 GMT

The timer doesn't work on Mac. It counts down just fine, but there's no sound or notification of any kind when it expires.

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

malapROpism — Thu, 30 Apr 2026 03:51:54 GMT

Love this idea, it's great to have a homepage that is useful and isn't full of adds an clickbait news

could it to be accessible on mobile as well so i can tick of items even when away from my pc

I also would love a way to display multiple lists at the same time, and resize the widgets so that i can see all items of a larger list.

I know i can use separate app or website for this (like google keep notes) but it would be more convenient here and definitely more private than google.

Keep up the good work though, you guys are doing great 🙂

topic Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs in Discussions

Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

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Suggestions for future widgets

Sync

UX wishes

Warning / watch-out

TL;DR

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Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

⚙️ How it could work (conceptually)

1. Local timer app/script

2. Firefox integration

3. Cross-device syncing

4. Choosing which device rings

🧠 Alternative (simpler)

🔧 Tools that might help

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🧭 Likely Causes

🔧 Steps to Try

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Re: Update: PAUSED! Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Re: Update: PAUSED! Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Re: December update: UNpaused :) Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

Re: Feedback welcome for New Tab widgets, now available via Firefox Labs

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