Plaintab · Minimal New Ta

PlainTab · Minimal New Tab

A fast, quiet, wallpaper-first new tab page.

When you open a new tab, you should see something calm and useful first: a beautiful wallpaper, a search bar, and your own links when you need them. Not a news feed, not ads, not trending cards, and not a dashboard full of widgets.

PlainTab keeps the new tab page clean, fast, and personal. Search, type a URL, open shortcuts, switch wallpaper sources, or simply enjoy the image for a second and move on.

Why PlainTab?

[Instant-feeling wallpaper]

PlainTab cares about the first moment after a new tab opens.

It stores a lightweight wallpaper preview locally so the next open can show an image as quickly as possible. Full wallpaper loading, caching, and theme color extraction happen later in the runtime path, helping reduce the blank-white feeling many new tab extensions have.

Wallpaper transitions use a two-layer design: the current image stays visible while the next one loads and fades in. If a network source fails, PlainTab tries to keep the current stable wallpaper instead of clearing the page.

[Flexible wallpaper sources]

PlainTab supports:

• Bing daily wallpaper
• Wallhaven wallpapers
• Local image uploads
• Local wallpaper folders
• RSS image feeds
• Custom image APIs
• Video wallpapers

Use Bing if you want something simple. Use uploads or folders if you already have a wallpaper collection. Use RSS, API, or Wallhaven if you like a more custom setup.

[Quiet homepage, useful tools]

PlainTab does not cover the homepage with shortcut tiles or turn the new tab page into another feed.

The homepage keeps the essentials: wallpaper, search, and a few controls. Shortcuts live in a command palette where you can search, add, edit, import bookmarks, and hide private links in a separate space.

The search bar can be adjusted to your habits:

• Position
• Width
• Corner radius
• Transparency
• Visibility mode
• Search history
• Search engine behavior

Keep it always visible, or let it appear only when needed.

[Settings with depth]

Settings stay in the settings panel, not scattered across the homepage.

You can adjust wallpaper sources, search, hotkeys, command palette behavior, interface style, data backup, language, and more. Most of the time, what you see is still just a quiet new tab page.

[Privacy and permissions]

PlainTab has no ads and no tracking analytics.

Uploaded wallpapers, shortcuts, search history, and configuration are mainly stored in your browser's local storage. PlainTab does not require an account and does not turn your new tab into a cloud content stream.

The extension uses permissions related to the new tab page, search, page interaction, and optional network wallpaper sources. Custom APIs, RSS, and Wallhaven may require access to their image sources. If you use local or default settings, the experience stays simple.

[Lightweight and open]

PlainTab is built with vanilla JavaScript, CSS, and browser APIs. There is no frontend framework, no build step, and no large runtime dependency.

The project is open source and easy to inspect. It is useful for daily browsing and also as a real-world browser extension project to learn from.

PlainTab is for you if you want:

• A better-looking new tab without feeds
• Daily wallpapers or your own wallpaper collection
• Search, shortcuts, bookmark import, and backups
• A homepage that is not filled with dozens of tiles
• A lightweight and transparent extension
• A complete browser extension project to study

PlainTab will not add:

• News feeds, trending lists, or recommended content
• Ads, sponsored cards, or promoted slots
• Account systems, social features, or cloud content streams
• Dozens of pinned shortcuts across the homepage
• Promotional autoplay video or content feeds

Support and feedback

• Source code: https://github.com/kaininx/PlainTab
• Live demo: https://plaintab.kaininx.workers.dev
• Release notes: https://github.com/kaininx/PlainTab/blob/main/docs/RELEASE_NOTES.md
• Like PlainTab? A Chrome Web Store review helps a lot.
• Found an issue or have an idea? Open an issue on GitHub.

Recent updates

• v3.2.3: Removed the unused tabs permission and refreshed release metadata so PlainTab asks for fewer permissions.

• v3.2.2: Added optional Bing 4K UHD wallpapers, kept 1080p as default, and improved cache, backup, settings, and storage reliability.

• v3.2.1: Added Wallhaven and video wallpaper support, refined wallpaper setup and apply safety, improved command palette and theme behavior, and fixed wallpaper, settings, and i18n stability issues.

• v3.2.0: Added command palette, RSS/API/local-folder wallpapers, WASM wallpaper theme colors, config import/export, and search history; migrated the v3.2 storage model and optimized startup, wallpaper, gallery, and settings paths.

PlainTab will keep moving in the same direction: clean, fast, quiet, and learnable.