New things

• Rebased to Chromium 139: Shift Browser has been rebased to Chromium version 139, bringing improved performance, security, and compatibility from the latest Chromium release.
• Recent Tabs in Floating Omnibox: When no search is active, the Floating Omnibox now shows up to four of your most recent tabs from the active Space. You can quickly navigate to them using your keyboard or mouse for faster tab switching.
• Active Tab Shown in Floating Omnibox Suggestions: When you open the Floating Omnibox (Cmd/Ctrl + L), your currently active tab now appears at the top of the suggestions list. Selecting it refreshes the tab and closes the Omnibox for a smoother browsing flow.
• “Not Secure” Indicator Added: When visiting an unsecured site, the Omnibox now clearly displays a Not Secure pill in place of the Site Information icon — making it easier to identify unsafe connections at a glance.
• Updated macOS Icon for Tahoe Compatibility: Shift now includes a refreshed macOS app icon designed for Apple’s upcoming macOS Tahoe (version 26). The new icon follows the Liquid Glass design style and squircle shape for a polished, system-consistent look.
• Quick Access to Set Shift as Default Browser: You can now set Shift as your default browser directly from Quick Settings. This option appears only when Shift isn’t already your default and takes you straight to the relevant setting for faster setup.

Notable updates

• Search Bar Design Updated Across Settings: The search bar styling in Extensions, History, Downloads, and Bookmarks has been refreshed for a more consistent and polished look throughout Shift Browser.
• Appearance Settings Improvements: The Appearance section in Advanced Settings now features clearer organization and a new Custom Layout button that opens Edit Mode. Layout, colors, and spacing have all been refined for better readability.
• Improved Floating Omnibox Readability: The text inside the Floating Omnibox is now larger than the suggestion text, making searches and navigation clearer and easier to read.
• Updated Suggested Apps in Onboarding: Gmail now appears as the first suggested app (pre-selected by default) when adding apps during onboarding. Additional popular apps are automatically suggested to fill new rows as you add more, making setup faster and more complete.
• Save Button Behavior Improved in Customize Layout: The Save button in Customize Layout is now disabled when no changes have been made or when all edits have been undone. This helps prevent unnecessary saves and keeps your workspace accurate.
• Reset Space Avatar to Default: You can now reset your Space avatar to its default — the first letter of the Space name. If you rename your Space, the letter automatically updates to match.
• Updated Installer Design for Windows and Mac: The Shift installer has been refreshed with updated visuals and copy on Windows, along with subtle color adjustments on Mac to align with the latest branding.
• “Support” Updated to “Support and Feedback”: The Quick Settings menu now clearly invites users to share their thoughts — the Support option has been renamed to Support and Feedback for easier access to help and direct feedback.

Bug fixes

Core functionality & stability

• Crash Resolutions: Addressed multiple stability issues and crashes related to network requests, navigation, input handling, window resizing, unknown browser imports, and automated Playwright tests. Shift is now more reliable and resilient under these conditions.
• Shift Closes Properly After Last Tab: Fixed an issue where, on first launch after installation, Shift would remain open after closing the final tab. The browser now closes completely as expected.
• No Extra Tabs on Tray Icon Click: Fixed an issue where clicking the Shift tray icon — or unlocking your computer with Shift running — would open an unnecessary new tab. Shift now reopens cleanly without spawning additional tabs.

Extensions and apps

• Popular Extensions Behave as Expected: Addressed several issues impacting common extensions.
  • Loom: Fixed an issue where clicking the Loom icon caused a blank white modal to appear before controls loaded. The interface now opens smoothly.
  • Todoist: The Todoist extension now displays and functions the same way it does in Chrome — no more layout shifts or hidden elements in the side panel.
  • Awesome Screenshot: Resolved an issue where clicking the Awesome Screenshot icon could cause Shift to crash. The extension now opens and functions normally.
• Google Meet Picture-in-Picture Displays Correctly: Fixed an issue where the Picture-in-Picture (PiP) window appeared blank when switching tabs or away from the meeting, sometimes prompting an unnecessary “Return to meeting” message. Video now displays correctly in PiP mode, and meeting behavior is consistent across tabs.
• Extension Installation & New Tab Pages: Fixed issues where the “Extension Installed” notification appeared long after installation, and where extension-based New Tab Page overrides (including chrome://newtab navigations) were blocked. Both now behave correctly and appear immediately or load as intended.
• Shift Package Tracker Stability Improved: Fixed an issue where closing the Package Tracker tab with Cmd + W (Mac) or Ctrl + W (Windows) could cause a blank screen or solid-color view. The app now closes and reopens normally.

Badges & Sync

• Sync Toggle Works Reliably: Fixed an issue where turning synchronization off and back on could prevent data (like bookmarks) from updating across devices. Sync now resumes properly when re-enabled.
• Badge Updates Across Apps Restored: Fixed several issues that affected unread badge accuracy.
  • The Shift tray icon now refreshes in real time when new messages arrive.
  • Microsoft Teams unread counts now correctly reflect messages across Chats, Communities, and Activity tabs.
  • Facebook Messenger and Facebook apps once again display unread message badges correctly.

Interface & Focus

• Omnibox & Focus Behavior Improvements: Fixed multiple issues affecting when and how the Omnibox or input fields receive focus.
  • Opening Quick Settings no longer causes the Omnibox to gain focus.
  • When refocusing the Shift window, input dialogs (like Edit App) now correctly retain focus instead of defaulting to the Omnibox.
  • Pressing Ctrl + F / Cmd + F now focuses the in-page Find pop-up instead of the Omnibox.
  • The first new tab opened with Cmd + T / Ctrl + T now correctly starts with the Omnibox in focus.
  • Clicking or long-pressing an Integrated App no longer shifts focus to the Omnibox.
• Top-Bar Control Panels Close as Expected: Fixed an issue where modals for top-bar controls (like Extensions, Sync, or Passwords) stayed open when clicking elsewhere. These panels now close automatically when you click away.

Bookmarks, Tabs & Layout

• Bookmarks Behave Consistently Across Views: Fixed several issues affecting bookmark visibility and interaction. The bookmarks bar no longer appears on first launch when empty, the three-dot menus in both the Bookmark Manager and Bookmarks page now open properly, and bookmarks in vertical bars remain visible without triggering unnecessary overflow menus.
• App Names Display Fully in “Open Link in App” Dialog: Fixed an issue where long app or space names were cut off. Full names now display correctly for better clarity.
• Tab Ripping No Longer Triggers Layout Changes: Fixed an issue where dragging a tab into a new window incorrectly triggered layout saves. Layouts now remain stable when moving tabs between windows.
• Improved Tab Dragging Between Monitors: Fixed an issue where dragging a tab to another monitor could fail if dropped near the screen edge, causing it to reopen on the wrong display. Tabs now open on the intended monitor and resize appropriately.
• No Extra Tab on Logout: Fixed an issue where logging out of your Shift account opened Shift.com in a new tab. Logging out now happens cleanly without opening additional pages.

Onboarding & Settings

• Clickable Links in Onboarding: Fixed an issue where the mouse cursor didn’t change when hovering over the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use links during onboarding. The cursor now properly indicates clickable links.
• App Suggestions Stay in Place During Onboarding: Fixed an issue where adding a new app caused all suggested apps to shift into the next row. Suggestions now remain properly aligned — only filler apps move when space is needed.
• Advanced Settings Fixes (Windows): Fixed issues where the search bar in Advanced Settings wouldn’t regain focus after being deselected and where sidebar text appeared too close to the title following the Chromium rebase. Proper spacing, focus behavior, and scrolling have been restored.
• Home & Synced History Layouts Corrected: Fixed issues where the Home tab could load an incorrect Chrome Web Store link after startup or waking from sleep, and where Synced History content overlapped with the toolbar. Layout and spacing now display correctly in both areas.
• Close Button Behavior Updated: An issue was fixed where clicking the window close (X) button would rotate through open Apps.
• Scrolling Works with Downloads Dropdown Open: Fixed an issue where scrolling was disabled while the downloads dropdown was open. You can now scroll freely without closing it.
• Spaces No Longer Disappear in Crowded Sidebars: Fixed an issue where Spaces could vanish into the overflow menu when many components (like tabs, bookmarks, and apps) were added to the same sidebar. Spaces now remain visible and accessible on all screen sizes.
• Removed Apps Stay Removed in Custom Layout: Fixed an issue where previously deleted apps would reappear when adding a new app in Custom Layout mode. Only newly added apps now appear as expected.

Branding & Design Consistency

• Shift Branding Restored in Safety Check: Fixed an issue where Chrome branding appeared beside Shift’s Safety Tools in Privacy & Security settings. The correct Shift logo now displays.
• Chrome References and Icons Removed: Fixed several areas where Chrome or Chromium names and icons appeared in Shift (including Settings, Bookmarks, Safety Tools, and Autocomplete). All branding now correctly reflects Shift.
• Tooltips No Longer Overlap with Menus: Fixed an issue where tooltips remained visible after opening dropdown menus (like Add to Shift). Tooltips now disappear as soon as a menu is opened for a cleaner interaction

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