[FEATURE] A button to turn OFF Research Preview
Preflight Checklist
- [x] I have searched existing requests and this feature hasn't been requested yet
- [x] This is a single feature request (not multiple features)
Problem Statement
Summary
Add a user-facing toggle to opt out of the "Research Preview" UI and return to the previous (classic) Claude Code interface.
Motivation
The top-left of the app currently shows "Claude Code Research Preview," indicating a new/experimental UI variant. As a user, I'd like the option to revert to the classic UI while the preview matures. Reasons this matters:
- Workflow disruption. UI changes mid-stream interrupt established muscle memory and slow down day-to-day work.
- Stability vs. experimentation. A "preview" label implies the UI is still evolving — users who depend on Claude Code for paid/billable work would prefer the stable surface until the new one is finalized.
- Comparative feedback. If users can flip between classic and preview at will, you'll get much higher-quality feedback (direct A/B comparisons) than from users stuck on one or the other.
Proposed Solution
A simple toggle, ideally in one of:
- Settings / Preferences panel ("Use classic UI")
- An "Exit preview" link near the "Research Preview" label itself (this is the pattern Google, Slack, GitHub, etc. use for opt-outs)
- A profile/account menu entry
The choice should persist across sessions for the signed-in user.
Alternative Solutions
- Searching settings for an existing toggle — couldn't find one.
- Browser-level workarounds (cookies, URL params) — undiscoverable for most users.
Priority
High - Significant impact on productivity
Feature Category
Web UI (claude.ai/code)
Use Case Example
I'm in the middle of an active coding session — debugging a sync job in my time-manager repo, with several open conversations and a mental map of where things live in the existing UI. I open Claude Code in my browser to continue working and notice the header now reads "Claude Code Research Preview." The layout has shifted: panels I rely on are in different spots, and I have to pause and re-learn where things are instead of continuing my debugging.
Step-by-step, here's what I'd do with the toggle:
- Open Claude Code → see "Research Preview" badge in the top-left.
- Click my avatar / settings menu → see a "Use classic UI" toggle (or click an "Exit preview" link next to the badge itself).
- Flip the toggle off → page reloads into the classic UI I was already productive in.
- Finish my debugging session without losing flow.
- Later, when I have downtime, flip the toggle back on to explore the preview deliberately and submit informed feedback comparing the two.
Without the toggle, I either eat the context-switch cost mid-task or avoid using Claude Code until the preview is finalized — neither of which is good for me or for the quality of feedback you receive on the new UI.
Additional Context
Environment
- Where I see it: top-left header reads "Claude Code Research Preview"
- Browser / OS: Firefox 150.0 on Windows 11
- URL: https://claude.ai/code
Other preview-related issues that motivate wanting an opt-out (happy to file these as separate bug reports if preferred):
- Frequent session disconnects with messages:
> Session disconnected — The cloud session stopped responding. Resend your message to retry, or start a new session if it keeps happening.
> Lost connection to the cloud session. Resend your message to retry — if it keeps happening, start a new session.
- Right-click hijacked. Right-clicking shows a custom in-app menu instead of the browser/OS context menu, blocking actions like "Inspect," "Save image as," or paste-from-history.
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