1715393 - Mute tab option is hidden behind a hover effect even on touch density

Status: NEW

(Firefox :: Tabbed Browser, defect)

Description

[Asif Youssuff]

Steps to reproduce:

1. Start Firefox on a machine with a touch enabled display
2. ensure Firefox is using the Touch density
3. go to youtube.com and click any non-drm encumbered video

What happens:

Firefox shows "PLAYING" text below the tab title. User must tap on the tab to make the the mute icon appear, resulting in a more awkward two-tap interaction.

Expected result:

The speaker icon is omnipresent on playing tabs to give touch users an affordance that there is a function to mute without having to tap on the tab and then tap again once the speaker icon appear. This is also not known before the tap, so users may never discover the feature on touch density.

The design here seems optimized for mouse users who may discover functions hidden behind a hover effect, but hovers are problematic on touch displays. Indeed, MDN recommends that "web developers should make sure that content is accessible on devices with limited or non-existent hovering capabilities" - https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/CSS/:hover