+++ This bug was initially created as a clone of Bug #1801298 +++

Tab key handling is currently disabled for the address bar's one off buttons, while arrow down/up move through the buttons. This is pretty much the reverse of how result selection works after bug 1801298, so we should probably update this, i.e. enable tab key handling and not have arrow down/up move through each one off button.

Jamie, given bug 1801389 comment 4, what's your position here? Should we do what I suggested in comment 0, keep things as they are, or do you have other ideas?

Currently, the only way to quickly get to the one off search buttons with the keyboard is to use the up arrow key. If we make these only tabbable, I guess you could shift+tab, but that doesn't seem particularly intuitive and would also break muscle memory.

Bug 1437524 proposed that instead of tab moving through autocomplete results, it should instead move to the one off buttons. Since that didn't fly (and now the tab key is needed to get to menu buttons too), users have had to use the arrow keys to get to the one off buttons for years now.

Given this, assuming we're not significantly changing tab key behaviour any time soon, I think we should keep the one off buttons reachable with the arrow keys. I don't have a strong opinion on whether they should be reachable with tab or not, except to say that right now, everything else is, so I guess that would be consistent.

Tab key handling is currently disabled for the address bar's one off buttons

Is this a recent change or has this always been the case?

(In reply to James Teh [:Jamie] from comment #4)

Tab key handling is currently disabled for the address bar's one off buttons

Is this a recent change or has this always been the case?

Has been like this pretty much forever, since bug 1292321. Disabling tab was deemed "the best solution until we figure out the desired behavior", and apparently we never followed up on that.