diff --git a/web/src/App.tsx b/web/src/App.tsx
index d63cd46..cf99c0b 100644
--- a/web/src/App.tsx
+++ b/web/src/App.tsx
@@ -7,9 +7,13 @@
  */
 
 import type { ReactNode } from "react";
-import { useCallback, useEffect, useMemo, useRef, useState } from "react";
+import { Suspense, lazy, useCallback, useDeferredValue, useEffect, useMemo, useRef, useState } from "react";
 
 import { api } from "./api/client";
+import { PERF_ENABLED, PERF } from "./lib/perfSettings";
+import { PerfPanel } from "./components/PerfPanel";
+import { useCoverWarmup } from "./hooks/useCoverWarmup";
+import { useEvent } from "./hooks/useEvent";
 import type { Album, HaConfig, RemoteMapping, RemoteSlotInput } from "./api/types";
 import { AlbumModal } from "./components/AlbumModal";
 import { Ambience, type AmbienceDebugSnapshot } from "./components/Ambience";
@@ -21,22 +25,27 @@ import { ParentPanel } from "./components/ParentPanel";
 import { PlayerBar } from "./components/PlayerBar";
 import { PlayView } from "./components/PlayView";
 import { RemoteAssignPopup } from "./components/RemoteAssignPopup";
-import { RoomView } from "./components/RoomView";
 import { TabRail } from "./components/TabRail";
-import { TippenApp } from "./components/TippenApp";
 import { useGridColumns } from "./hooks/useGridColumns";
 import { useLibrary } from "./hooks/useLibrary";
 import { usePlayerState } from "./hooks/usePlayerState";
 import { DEFAULT_MANUAL_CONTROL, DEFAULT_TUNABLES } from "./lib/ambienceTunables";
 import type { AmbienceTunables, ManualControl } from "./lib/ambienceTunables";
 import type { Action, UiState } from "./lib/keyboard";
-import { browseBackActions, GROUP_ORDER, handleKey, initialUiState, isRootShelf } from "./lib/keyboard";
+import { browseBackActions, GROUP_ORDER, handleKey, initialUiState, isRootShelf, toggleModeActions } from "./lib/keyboard";
 import { playPop } from "./lib/pop";
 import { targetForAlbum } from "./lib/remote";
 import type { Group, Results, SongHit } from "./lib/search";
 import { buildSearchIndex, categoryMatches, groupOf, results as computeResults } from "./lib/search";
 import { SHOW_AMBIENCE, SHOW_CARD_BLUR, SHOW_GLASS_BLUR } from "./lib/theme";
 
+// The room page and the typing game are each a tab away from the player and together a
+// large share of the bundle; the kiosk parses and compiles only what it opens.
+const RoomView = lazy(() => import("./components/RoomView").then((m) => ({ default: m.RoomView })));
+const TippenApp = lazy(() =>
+  import("./components/TippenApp").then((m) => ({ default: m.TippenApp })),
+);
+
 /** How long an armed "A" waits for the digit that completes the shortcut. */
 const ASSIGN_PENDING_TIMEOUT_MS = 4000;
 
@@ -58,6 +67,9 @@ export function App() {
   const [parentMode, setParentMode] = useState(
     () => new URLSearchParams(location.search).get("parentMode") === "1",
   );
+  const [perfOpen, setPerfOpen] = useState(
+    () => PERF_ENABLED && new URLSearchParams(location.search).get("perf") === "1",
+  );
   const [debugDynamicUI] = useState(
     () => new URLSearchParams(location.search).get("debugDynamicUI") === "1",
   );
@@ -97,16 +109,24 @@ export function App() {
   // only reloads when the backend says a rescan finished, so this is genuinely rare.
   const index = useMemo(() => buildSearchIndex(library.albums), [library.albums]);
 
+  // Kiosk only: fetch and decode every card thumbnail up front, in idle time.
+  useCoverWarmup(library.albums, PERF.coverWarmup);
+
+  // Typing updates `ui.search` at once and the search box with it; the results follow a
+  // deferred copy, so a render for an older query is dropped when the next letter lands
+  // instead of being finished first.
+  const deferredSearch = useDeferredValue(ui.search);
+
   const results: Results = useMemo(
     () =>
       computeResults({
         index,
-        search: ui.search,
+        search: deferredSearch,
         mode: ui.mode,
         group: ui.group,
         category: ui.category,
       }),
-    [index, ui.search, ui.mode, ui.group, ui.category],
+    [index, deferredSearch, ui.mode, ui.group, ui.category],
   );
 
   // The bare root's three shelves, by category key only: the keyboard handler needs
@@ -351,17 +371,17 @@ export function App() {
     return () => clearTimeout(timer);
   }, [assignStatus]);
 
-  const onEnterGroup = (group: Group, category: string | null) => {
+  const onEnterGroup = useEvent((group: Group, category: string | null) => {
     playPop(category ? 440 : 380);
-    setUi((previous) => ({ ...previous, group, category, search: "", selIndex: 0 }));
-  };
+    setUi((previous) => ({ ...previous, group, category, search: "", searchOpen: false, selIndex: 0 }));
+  });
 
-  const onCategory = (key: string | null) => {
+  const onCategory = useEvent((key: string | null) => {
     if (key) playPop(440);
     setUi((previous) => ({ ...previous, category: key, selIndex: 0 }));
-  };
+  });
 
-  const onOpenAlbum = (album: Album, navIndex: number) => {
+  const onOpenAlbum = useEvent((album: Album, navIndex: number) => {
     // A podcast episode is a single track behaving like an audiobook of one chapter -
     // there's nothing a metadata popup would add, so it just starts playing.
     if (groupOf(album) === "podcasts") {
@@ -371,14 +391,14 @@ export function App() {
     }
     playPop(420);
     setUi((previous) => ({ ...previous, openAlbumId: album.id, selIndex: navIndex, modalTrackIndex: 0 }));
-  };
+  });
 
   /** Clicking the title text (as opposed to the cover) starts the album right away -
    * the same thing ENTER does from the keyboard - instead of opening the track list. */
-  const onPlayAlbum = (album: Album, navIndex: number) => {
+  const onPlayAlbum = useEvent((album: Album, navIndex: number) => {
     setUi((previous) => ({ ...previous, selIndex: navIndex }));
     play(album.id, 0);
-  };
+  });
 
   const onOpenCurrentAlbum = () => {
     if (!currentAlbum) return;
@@ -392,7 +412,7 @@ export function App() {
     }));
   };
 
-  const onPlaySong = (hit: SongHit) => play(hit.album.id, hit.index);
+  const onPlaySong = useEvent((hit: SongHit) => play(hit.album.id, hit.index));
   const onNext = useCallback(() => run([{ type: "next" }]), [run]);
   const onPrevious = useCallback(() => run([{ type: "previous" }]), [run]);
 
@@ -443,7 +463,11 @@ export function App() {
             group={ui.group}
             index={index}
             mode={ui.mode}
-            search={ui.search}
+            search={deferredSearch}
+            typed={ui.search}
+            searchOpen={ui.searchOpen}
+            onToggleMode={() => run(toggleModeActions(ui))}
+            columns={columns}
             category={ui.category}
             selIndex={ui.selIndex}
             shelfRow={ui.shelfRow}
@@ -506,11 +530,13 @@ export function App() {
         </div>
       )}
 
-      {ui.page === "room" && haConfig && <RoomView config={haConfig} />}
+      <Suspense fallback={null}>
+        {ui.page === "room" && haConfig && <RoomView config={haConfig} />}
 
-      {ui.page === "typing" && (
-        <TippenApp onExit={() => setUi((previous) => ({ ...previous, page: "music" }))} />
-      )}
+        {ui.page === "typing" && (
+          <TippenApp onExit={() => setUi((previous) => ({ ...previous, page: "music" }))} />
+        )}
+      </Suspense>
 
       {openAlbum && state && (
         <AlbumModal
@@ -559,6 +585,30 @@ export function App() {
 
       {parentMode && <ParentPanel onClose={() => setParentMode(false)} />}
 
+      {PERF_ENABLED && !perfOpen && (
+        <button
+          onClick={() => setPerfOpen(true)}
+          aria-label="Leistungseinstellungen"
+          style={{
+            position: "absolute",
+            left: 8,
+            bottom: 8,
+            zIndex: 5,
+            width: 32,
+            height: 32,
+            border: "none",
+            borderRadius: 999,
+            cursor: "pointer",
+            background: "oklch(15% 0.03 210 / .35)",
+            color: "#fff",
+            opacity: 0.5,
+          }}
+        >
+          ⚡
+        </button>
+      )}
+      {PERF_ENABLED && perfOpen && <PerfPanel onClose={() => setPerfOpen(false)} />}
+
       {(!state || library.loading) && <Splash error={library.error} />}
 
       {debugDynamicUI && debugSnapshot && (
diff --git a/web/src/api/__tests__/client.test.ts b/web/src/api/__tests__/client.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9f6e13e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/web/src/api/__tests__/client.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+
+import { coverUrl } from "../client";
+
+describe("coverUrl", () => {
+  it("is the plain full-size URL with no options", () => {
+    expect(coverUrl("abc")).toBe("/api/albums/abc/cover");
+  });
+
+  it("asks for the thumbnail and carries the cache-busting version", () => {
+    expect(coverUrl("abc", { size: "thumb", version: 42 })).toBe(
+      "/api/albums/abc/cover?size=thumb&v=42",
+    );
+  });
+
+  it("leaves the version off when there is none, so the server revalidates", () => {
+    expect(coverUrl("abc", { size: "thumb" })).toBe("/api/albums/abc/cover?size=thumb");
+    expect(coverUrl("abc", { version: 0 })).toBe("/api/albums/abc/cover");
+  });
+});
diff --git a/web/src/api/client.ts b/web/src/api/client.ts
index 32e4b88..56a4b08 100644
--- a/web/src/api/client.ts
+++ b/web/src/api/client.ts
@@ -122,4 +122,20 @@ export const api = {
     request<TippenRunResult>("/tippen/runs", { method: "POST", body: JSON.stringify(body) }),
 };
 
-export const coverUrl = (albumId: string) => `/api/albums/${albumId}/cover`;
+/** Cover URL. `thumb` is the small file for cards and rows; only the play view needs
+ * `full`. With a `version` (`Album.cover_v`) the URL names one exact set of bytes and the
+ * server marks it immutable, so the browser never asks for it twice; without one it
+ * revalidates on every use. */
+export function coverUrl(
+  albumId: string,
+  { size = "full", version }: { size?: "thumb" | "full"; version?: number } = {},
+): string {
+  const params: string[] = [];
+  if (size === "thumb") params.push("size=thumb");
+  if (version) params.push(`v=${version}`);
+  return `/api/albums/${albumId}/cover${params.length ? `?${params.join("&")}` : ""}`;
+}
+
+/** Largest `Cover` `size` (CSS px) that is served the thumbnail; the play view's 340 gets
+ * the full file. Keep in step with `THUMB_COVER_PX` in the backend's `library/cache.py`. */
+export const THUMB_MAX_SIZE = 220;
diff --git a/web/src/api/types.ts b/web/src/api/types.ts
index e200d54..07b6e2d 100644
--- a/web/src/api/types.ts
+++ b/web/src/api/types.ts
@@ -67,6 +67,8 @@ export interface Album {
   /** Three `#rrggbb`, taken from the cover art or synthesised: primary, secondary, accent. */
   colors: string[];
   has_cover: boolean;
+  /** Cache-busting version of the cover file; put it in the cover URL's `v`. */
+  cover_v?: number;
   duration: number;
   tracks: Track[];
   /** Every track is still locked - show a question mark instead of cover art. */
diff --git a/web/src/components/BrowseView.tsx b/web/src/components/BrowseView.tsx
index 90c58bd..6cec0dd 100644
--- a/web/src/components/BrowseView.tsx
+++ b/web/src/components/BrowseView.tsx
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@
  * flat across songs, then categories, then albums so one pair of arrow keys walks
  * the whole page. */
 
-import { useEffect, useMemo, useRef } from "react";
+import { memo, useEffect, useMemo, useRef } from "react";
 import type { MouseEvent as ReactMouseEvent, ReactNode } from "react";
 
 import type { Album } from "../api/types";
@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@ import {
 } from "../lib/covers";
 import { clock } from "../lib/format";
 import type { Category, Group, Results, SearchIndex, SongHit } from "../lib/search";
-import { categoryMatches, groupOf } from "../lib/search";
+import { categoryMatches, effectiveSearch, groupOf } from "../lib/search";
 import {
   ANIMATE_VIEW_TRANSITIONS,
   glassTint,
@@ -32,6 +32,8 @@ import {
   SHOW_ROW_TITLES,
   TAB_RAIL_CLEARANCE,
 } from "../lib/theme";
+import { useIncrementalCount } from "../hooks/useIncrementalCount";
+import { PERF } from "../lib/perfSettings";
 import { Cover } from "./Cover";
 
 interface Props {
@@ -39,7 +41,17 @@ interface Props {
   group: Group | null;
   index: SearchIndex;
   mode: "albums" | "tracks";
+  /** The query the results below were computed for. Trails `typed` while a render for
+   * a newer one is still in flight. */
   search: string;
+  /** What is in the search box right now - never behind. */
+  typed: string;
+  /** `/` was pressed, so the box shows while still empty. */
+  searchOpen: boolean;
+  /** The pill in the search box: album search <-> title search. */
+  onToggleMode: () => void;
+  /** Columns in the album grid, so the first paint can be exactly three rows. */
+  columns: number;
   category: string | null;
   selIndex: number;
   /** Which of the three root shelves is focused - only meaningful at the bare root,
@@ -73,12 +85,16 @@ const GROUP_SECTION_LABEL: Record<Group, string> = {
   podcasts: "Episoden",
 };
 
-export function BrowseView({
+function BrowseViewImpl({
   results,
   group,
   index,
   mode,
-  search,
+  search: rawSearch,
+  typed,
+  searchOpen,
+  onToggleMode,
+  columns,
   category,
   selIndex,
   shelfRow,
@@ -93,7 +109,12 @@ export function BrowseView({
   const scroller = useRef<HTMLDivElement | null>(null);
   const { songs, categories, albums: albumResults, total } = results;
 
-  const isRootShelf = group === null && mode !== "tracks" && !search;
+  // One letter is not a query yet - see `effectiveSearch`.
+  const search = effectiveSearch(rawSearch);
+
+  // Gone as soon as the box appears - `typed` and `searchOpen` are never behind, so the
+  // shelves do not linger for the one letter that is not a query yet.
+  const isRootShelf = group === null && mode !== "tracks" && !typed && !searchOpen;
 
   // The root shelf has no flat `results` of its own (each row computes its own
   // categories independently) - it's a genuine two-axis layout instead: `shelfRow`
@@ -103,11 +124,7 @@ export function BrowseView({
   // needs the row half of that.
   const focusedRow = Math.max(0, Math.min(GROUPS.length - 1, shelfRow));
   const focusedCol = Math.max(0, selIndex);
-  const selected = isRootShelf
-    ? focusedRow
-    : total
-      ? Math.min(selIndex, total - 1)
-      : -1;
+  const selected = isRootShelf ? focusedRow : total ? Math.min(selIndex, total - 1) : -1;
 
   const shelves = useMemo(
     () =>
@@ -138,103 +155,146 @@ export function BrowseView({
     }
   }, [selected]);
 
+  // Long lists render a screenful and grow as the user nears the end. The three lists
+  // share one selection index (songs, then categories, then albums), hence the offsets.
+  const rowKey = `${group}:${category}:${mode}:${search}`;
+  const gridInitial = Math.max(1, columns) * 3;
+  const songWindow = useIncrementalCount(songs.length, 20, 20, rowKey, scroller, selected);
+  const categoryWindow = useIncrementalCount(
+    categories.length,
+    gridInitial,
+    gridInitial,
+    rowKey,
+    scroller,
+    selected - songs.length,
+  );
+  const albumWindow = useIncrementalCount(
+    albumResults.length,
+    gridInitial,
+    gridInitial,
+    rowKey,
+    scroller,
+    selected - songs.length - categories.length,
+  );
+
   if (isRootShelf) {
     return (
-      <div
-        ref={scroller}
-        className={ANIMATE_VIEW_TRANSITIONS ? "view-enter" : undefined}
-        // Right padding reserves room for the tab rail's own glass bar (see
-        // TAB_RAIL_CLEARANCE) so a full-width shelf row never renders under it.
-        style={{ flex: 1, overflow: "auto", minHeight: 0, padding: `14px ${TAB_RAIL_CLEARANCE}px 250px 32px` }}
-      >
-        {shelves.map(({ group: shelfGroup, categories: shelfCategories }, index) => (
-          <div
-            key={shelfGroup}
-            className="glass-panel"
-            role="button"
-            tabIndex={0}
-            data-nav-index={index}
-            onClick={() => onEnterGroup(shelfGroup, null)}
-            onKeyDown={(event) => {
-              if (event.key !== "Enter" && event.key !== " ") return;
-              event.preventDefault();
-              onEnterGroup(shelfGroup, null);
-            }}
-            aria-label={`Alle ${GROUP_ICON[shelfGroup]} ${GROUP_LABEL[shelfGroup]} durchsuchen`}
-            style={{
-              marginBottom: ROW_SPACING,
-              padding: "12px 14px",
-              cursor: "pointer",
-              // Once a row has tiles, the focus ring belongs on the tile the keyboard
-              // is actually on (below) rather than the row around it - this only
-              // stands in for that when there's nothing to focus.
-              outline:
-                focusedRow === index && shelfCategories.length === 0
-                  ? "4px solid var(--paper)"
-                  : undefined,
-              outlineOffset: 2,
-              ...glassTint(GROUP_HUE[shelfGroup]),
-            }}
-          >
-            {(SHOW_ROW_TITLES || SHOW_ROW_ICONS) && (
-              <div
-                style={{
-                  display: "flex",
-                  alignItems: "center",
-                  gap: SHOW_ROW_TITLES && SHOW_ROW_ICONS ? 10 : 6,
-                  marginBottom: 12,
-                  fontSize: 20,
-                  fontWeight: 900,
-                  color: "var(--paper)",
-                }}
-              >
-                {SHOW_ROW_ICONS && <span className="group-icon">{GROUP_ICON[shelfGroup]}</span>}
-                {SHOW_ROW_TITLES && GROUP_LABEL[shelfGroup]}
-                {SHOW_ROW_TITLES && <span style={{ opacity: 0.6, fontSize: 17 }}>›</span>}
-              </div>
-            )}
-            {shelfCategories.length === 0 ? (
-              <div
-                style={{
-                  textAlign: "center",
-                  fontSize: 14,
-                  fontWeight: 700,
-                  color: "oklch(88% 0.02 210 / .6)",
-                }}
-              >
-                Noch nichts hier
-              </div>
-            ) : (
-              <ShelfRow focusedIndex={focusedRow === index ? focusedCol : null}>
-                {shelfCategories.map((entry, tileIndex) => (
-                  <CategoryTile
-                    key={entry.key}
-                    entry={entry}
-                    navIndex={tileIndex}
-                    selected={focusedRow === index && focusedCol === tileIndex}
-                    onClick={(event) => {
-                      // Otherwise this bubbles to the panel's own onClick, which would
-                      // open the group root instead of the category just clicked.
-                      event.stopPropagation();
-                      onEnterGroup(shelfGroup, entry.key);
-                    }}
-                  />
-                ))}
-              </ShelfRow>
-            )}
-          </div>
-        ))}
-      </div>
+      <>
+        <SearchBox
+          typed={typed}
+          mode={mode}
+          open={searchOpen}
+          onToggleMode={onToggleMode}
+          note=""
+        />
+        <div
+          ref={scroller}
+          className={ANIMATE_VIEW_TRANSITIONS ? "view-enter" : undefined}
+          // Right padding reserves room for the tab rail's own glass bar (see
+          // TAB_RAIL_CLEARANCE) so a full-width shelf row never renders under it.
+          style={{
+            flex: 1,
+            overflow: "auto",
+            minHeight: 0,
+            padding: `14px ${TAB_RAIL_CLEARANCE}px 250px 32px`,
+          }}
+        >
+          {shelves.map(({ group: shelfGroup, categories: shelfCategories }, index) => (
+            <div
+              key={shelfGroup}
+              className="glass-panel"
+              role="button"
+              tabIndex={0}
+              data-nav-index={index}
+              onClick={() => onEnterGroup(shelfGroup, null)}
+              onKeyDown={(event) => {
+                if (event.key !== "Enter" && event.key !== " ") return;
+                event.preventDefault();
+                onEnterGroup(shelfGroup, null);
+              }}
+              aria-label={`Alle ${GROUP_ICON[shelfGroup]} ${GROUP_LABEL[shelfGroup]} durchsuchen`}
+              style={{
+                marginBottom: ROW_SPACING,
+                padding: "12px 14px",
+                cursor: "pointer",
+                // Once a row has tiles, the focus ring belongs on the tile the keyboard
+                // is actually on (below) rather than the row around it - this only
+                // stands in for that when there's nothing to focus.
+                outline:
+                  focusedRow === index && shelfCategories.length === 0
+                    ? "4px solid var(--paper)"
+                    : undefined,
+                outlineOffset: 2,
+                ...glassTint(GROUP_HUE[shelfGroup]),
+              }}
+            >
+              {(SHOW_ROW_TITLES || SHOW_ROW_ICONS) && (
+                <div
+                  style={{
+                    display: "flex",
+                    alignItems: "center",
+                    gap: SHOW_ROW_TITLES && SHOW_ROW_ICONS ? 10 : 6,
+                    marginBottom: 12,
+                    fontSize: 20,
+                    fontWeight: 900,
+                    color: "var(--paper)",
+                  }}
+                >
+                  {SHOW_ROW_ICONS && <span className="group-icon">{GROUP_ICON[shelfGroup]}</span>}
+                  {SHOW_ROW_TITLES && GROUP_LABEL[shelfGroup]}
+                  {SHOW_ROW_TITLES && <span style={{ opacity: 0.6, fontSize: 17 }}>›</span>}
+                </div>
+              )}
+              {shelfCategories.length === 0 ? (
+                <div
+                  style={{
+                    textAlign: "center",
+                    fontSize: 14,
+                    fontWeight: 700,
+                    color: "oklch(88% 0.02 210 / .6)",
+                  }}
+                >
+                  Noch nichts hier
+                </div>
+              ) : (
+                <ShelfRow focusedIndex={focusedRow === index ? focusedCol : null}>
+                  {shelfCategories.map((entry, tileIndex) => (
+                    <CategoryTile
+                      key={entry.key}
+                      entry={entry}
+                      navIndex={tileIndex}
+                      selected={focusedRow === index && focusedCol === tileIndex}
+                      onClick={(event) => {
+                        // Otherwise this bubbles to the panel's own onClick, which would
+                        // open the group root instead of the category just clicked.
+                        event.stopPropagation();
+                        onEnterGroup(shelfGroup, entry.key);
+                      }}
+                    />
+                  ))}
+                </ShelfRow>
+              )}
+            </div>
+          ))}
+        </div>
+      </>
     );
   }
 
-  const showSearchBar = search.length > 0 || mode === "tracks";
   const countLabel =
-    mode === "tracks"
-      ? `${songs.length} Titel gefunden`
-      : albumResults.length
-        ? `${albumResults.length} Album${albumResults.length === 1 ? "" : "en"} gefunden`
-        : "nichts gefunden";
+    typed.trim() && !search
+      ? "noch ein Buchstabe …"
+      : mode === "tracks"
+        ? songs.length
+          ? `${songs.length} Titel gefunden`
+          : search
+            ? "nichts gefunden"
+            : ""
+        : albumResults.length
+          ? `${albumResults.length} Album${albumResults.length === 1 ? "" : "en"} gefunden`
+          : search
+            ? "nichts gefunden"
+            : "";
 
   return (
     <>
@@ -253,50 +313,13 @@ export function BrowseView({
         </div>
       )}
 
-      {showSearchBar && (
-        <div
-          style={{
-            margin: "2px 32px 6px",
-            display: "flex",
-            alignItems: "center",
-            justifyContent: "center",
-            gap: 12,
-            flex: "none",
-          }}
-        >
-          <div
-            style={{
-              background: "var(--paper)",
-              color: "var(--ink)",
-              fontWeight: 800,
-              fontSize: 20,
-              padding: "10px 20px",
-              borderRadius: 999,
-              boxShadow: "0 4px 14px var(--shadow)",
-              display: "flex",
-              alignItems: "center",
-              gap: 10,
-            }}
-          >
-            <span
-              style={{
-                fontSize: 14,
-                fontWeight: 800,
-                background: "var(--ink)",
-                color: "#fff",
-                padding: "4px 10px",
-                borderRadius: 999,
-              }}
-            >
-              {mode === "tracks" ? "♪ Titel" : "🔎 Alben"}
-            </span>
-            <span>{search ? `"${search}"` : "tippe …"}</span>
-          </div>
-          <div style={{ color: "oklch(90% 0.02 210 / .85)", fontWeight: 700, fontSize: 14 }}>
-            {countLabel}
-          </div>
-        </div>
-      )}
+      <SearchBox
+        typed={typed}
+        mode={mode}
+        open={searchOpen}
+        onToggleMode={onToggleMode}
+        note={countLabel}
+      />
 
       <div
         ref={scroller}
@@ -304,7 +327,12 @@ export function BrowseView({
         className={ANIMATE_VIEW_TRANSITIONS ? "view-enter" : undefined}
         // Right padding reserves room for the tab rail's own glass bar (see
         // TAB_RAIL_CLEARANCE) so a full-width row/grid never renders under it.
-        style={{ flex: 1, overflow: "auto", minHeight: 0, padding: `14px ${TAB_RAIL_CLEARANCE}px 250px 32px` }}
+        style={{
+          flex: 1,
+          overflow: "auto",
+          minHeight: 0,
+          padding: `14px ${TAB_RAIL_CLEARANCE}px 250px 32px`,
+        }}
       >
         {songs.length > 0 && (
           <div style={{ marginBottom: 30 }}>
@@ -320,7 +348,7 @@ export function BrowseView({
                 margin: "0 auto",
               }}
             >
-              {songs.map((hit, index) => (
+              {songs.slice(0, songWindow.visible).map((hit, index) => (
                 <button
                   key={`${hit.album.id}-${hit.index}`}
                   data-nav-index={index}
@@ -336,8 +364,7 @@ export function BrowseView({
                     textAlign: "left",
                     font: "inherit",
                     ...rowTint(GROUP_HUE[groupOf(hit.album)], currentAlbumId === hit.album.id),
-                    outline:
-                      selected === index ? "4px solid var(--paper)" : undefined,
+                    outline: selected === index ? "4px solid var(--paper)" : undefined,
                     outlineOffset: 2,
                   }}
                 >
@@ -350,7 +377,13 @@ export function BrowseView({
                     />
                   </div>
                   <div style={{ flex: 1, minWidth: 0 }}>
-                    <div style={{ fontSize: 16, fontWeight: 800, color: "var(--paper)" }}>
+                    <div
+                      style={{
+                        fontSize: 16,
+                        fontWeight: 800,
+                        color: "var(--paper)",
+                      }}
+                    >
                       {hit.title}
                     </div>
                     <div
@@ -377,6 +410,9 @@ export function BrowseView({
                 </button>
               ))}
             </div>
+            {songWindow.visible < songs.length && (
+              <div ref={songWindow.sentinelRef} aria-hidden style={{ height: 1 }} />
+            )}
           </div>
         )}
 
@@ -384,7 +420,7 @@ export function BrowseView({
           <div>
             <SectionTitle centered>{GROUP_CATEGORY_LABEL[group]}</SectionTitle>
             <div className="grid" ref={gridRef}>
-              {categories.map((entry, index) => {
+              {categories.slice(0, categoryWindow.visible).map((entry, index) => {
                 const navIndex = songs.length + index;
                 return (
                   <CategoryTile
@@ -397,6 +433,9 @@ export function BrowseView({
                 );
               })}
             </div>
+            {categoryWindow.visible < categories.length && (
+              <div ref={categoryWindow.sentinelRef} aria-hidden style={{ height: 1 }} />
+            )}
           </div>
         )}
 
@@ -419,7 +458,7 @@ export function BrowseView({
               <SectionTitle centered>{GROUP_SECTION_LABEL[group]}</SectionTitle>
             )}
             <div className="grid" ref={gridRef}>
-              {albumResults.map((album, index) => {
+              {albumResults.slice(0, albumWindow.visible).map((album, index) => {
                 const navIndex = songs.length + categories.length + index;
                 const podcast = groupOf(album) === "podcasts";
                 // An audiobook's artist is almost always the same as the character/
@@ -468,7 +507,11 @@ export function BrowseView({
                     <button
                       onClick={() => !album.locked && onPlayAlbum(album, navIndex)}
                       disabled={album.locked}
-                      aria-label={album.locked ? `${album.title}: noch nicht freigeschaltet` : `${album.title} abspielen`}
+                      aria-label={
+                        album.locked
+                          ? `${album.title}: noch nicht freigeschaltet`
+                          : `${album.title} abspielen`
+                      }
                       style={{
                         display: "block",
                         width: "100%",
@@ -547,7 +590,9 @@ export function BrowseView({
                               marginTop: 6,
                             }}
                           >
-                            {podcast ? clock(album.duration) : unitLabel(album, album.tracks.length)}
+                            {podcast
+                              ? clock(album.duration)
+                              : unitLabel(album, album.tracks.length)}
                             {album.figure && " · 🧸"}
                           </div>
                         </>
@@ -557,20 +602,34 @@ export function BrowseView({
                 );
               })}
             </div>
+            {albumWindow.visible < albumResults.length && (
+              <div ref={albumWindow.sentinelRef} aria-hidden style={{ height: 1 }} />
+            )}
           </div>
         )}
 
         {total === 0 && (
           <div
-            style={{ textAlign: "center", marginTop: 60, color: "oklch(92% 0.02 210 / .8)" }}
+            style={{
+              textAlign: "center",
+              marginTop: 60,
+              color: "oklch(92% 0.02 210 / .8)",
+            }}
           >
             <img
               src="/dolphin-mascot.png"
               alt=""
-              style={{ width: 120, height: 120, objectFit: "contain", opacity: 0.9 }}
+              style={{
+                width: 120,
+                height: 120,
+                objectFit: "contain",
+                opacity: 0.9,
+              }}
             />
             <div style={{ fontSize: 22, fontWeight: 800, marginTop: 10 }}>
-              Nichts gefunden — probier andere Buchstaben!
+              {search
+                ? "Nichts gefunden — probier andere Buchstaben!"
+                : "Tippe mindestens zwei Buchstaben …"}
             </div>
           </div>
         )}
@@ -648,11 +707,10 @@ function ShelfRow({
       element.classList.remove("dragging");
       if (dragged) {
         // This was a pan, not a click - swallow the click a tile would otherwise get.
-        window.addEventListener(
-          "click",
-          (clickEvent) => clickEvent.stopPropagation(),
-          { capture: true, once: true },
-        );
+        window.addEventListener("click", (clickEvent) => clickEvent.stopPropagation(), {
+          capture: true,
+          once: true,
+        });
       }
     };
     window.addEventListener("mousemove", onMove);
@@ -682,6 +740,7 @@ function CategoryTile({
 }) {
   const books = entry.albums.filter(isBook).length;
   const allBooks = books === entry.albums.length;
+  const allPodcasts = entry.albums.every((a) => groupOf(a) === "podcasts");
   const mostlyBooks = books * 2 > entry.albums.length;
   const shown = entry.albums.slice(0, 4);
   return (
@@ -695,7 +754,8 @@ function CategoryTile({
           ? `oklch(92% 0.09 ${GROUP_HUE.audiobooks} / .7)`
           : `oklch(95% 0.015 ${GROUP_HUE.music} / .66)`,
         borderRadius: allBooks ? "6px 18px 18px 6px" : "16px",
-        boxShadow: "0 6px 18px var(--shadow)",
+        // One blurred shadow per tile: dropped under `?pi=1`, like `cardShadow`.
+        boxShadow: PERF.tileShadows ? "0 6px 18px var(--shadow)" : "none",
       }}
     >
       <div
@@ -758,26 +818,24 @@ function CategoryTile({
           }}
         >
           {entry.albums.length}{" "}
-          {allBooks
+          {allPodcasts
             ? entry.albums.length === 1
-              ? "Hörbuch"
-              : "Hörbücher"
-            : entry.albums.length === 1
-              ? "Album"
-              : "Alben"}
+              ? "Episode"
+              : "Episoden"
+            : allBooks
+              ? entry.albums.length === 1
+                ? "Hörbuch"
+                : "Hörbücher"
+              : entry.albums.length === 1
+                ? "Album"
+                : "Alben"}
         </div>
       </div>
     </button>
   );
 }
 
-function SectionTitle({
-  children,
-  centered,
-}: {
-  children: ReactNode;
-  centered?: boolean;
-}) {
+function SectionTitle({ children, centered }: { children: ReactNode; centered?: boolean }) {
   return (
     <div
       style={{
@@ -799,8 +857,63 @@ function SectionTitle({
 
 function Muted({ children }: { children: ReactNode }) {
   return (
-    <span style={{ fontSize: 13, fontWeight: 700, color: "oklch(88% 0.02 210 / .7)" }}>
+    <span
+      style={{
+        fontSize: 13,
+        fontWeight: 700,
+        color: "oklch(88% 0.02 210 / .7)",
+      }}
+    >
       {children}
     </span>
   );
 }
+
+/** The search field, shown once there is something in it so it is obvious where typing goes. It only
+ * displays: keys are caught by the window handler in App, which is what lets the whole
+ * UI be driven from the keyboard without focusing anything first. */
+function SearchBox({
+  typed,
+  mode,
+  open,
+  onToggleMode,
+  note,
+}: {
+  typed: string;
+  mode: "albums" | "tracks";
+  open: boolean;
+  onToggleMode: () => void;
+  note: string;
+}) {
+  // Nothing to show until a letter is typed or `/` opens it - and in tracks mode the
+  // box is also how the screen says which mode it is in.
+  if (!typed && !open && mode !== "tracks") return null;
+  return (
+    <div className="searchbox-row">
+      <div className="searchbox" data-empty={typed ? undefined : true}>
+        {/* mousedown is swallowed so the button never takes focus: a focused button
+            would also "click" on the Space or Enter the window handler already used. */}
+        <button
+          type="button"
+          className="searchbox-mode"
+          onMouseDown={(event) => event.preventDefault()}
+          onClick={onToggleMode}
+          title="Suchmodus wechseln ( / )"
+        >
+          {mode === "tracks" ? "♪ Titel" : "🔎 Alben"} ⇄
+        </button>
+        <span className="searchbox-text">
+          {!typed && <span className="searchbox-caret" aria-hidden />}
+          {typed || <span className="searchbox-placeholder">Tippe zum Suchen …</span>}
+          {typed && <span className="searchbox-caret" aria-hidden />}
+        </span>
+      </div>
+      {note && <div className="searchbox-note">{note}</div>}
+    </div>
+  );
+}
+
+/** Memoised: `App` re-renders twice a second during playback (position frames), and
+ * every prop here is either a primitive, a memoised value or a stable handler, so the
+ * card grid - up to ~340 cards - stays put unless something it shows has changed. */
+export const BrowseView = memo(BrowseViewImpl);
diff --git a/web/src/components/Cover.tsx b/web/src/components/Cover.tsx
index da98946..76ca006 100644
--- a/web/src/components/Cover.tsx
+++ b/web/src/components/Cover.tsx
@@ -9,9 +9,9 @@
 
 import type { CSSProperties } from "react";
 
-import { coverUrl } from "../api/client";
+import { THUMB_MAX_SIZE, coverUrl } from "../api/client";
 import type { Album } from "../api/types";
-import { aspectOf, coverBackground, isBook } from "../lib/covers";
+import { aspectOf, coverBackground, coverUnderlay, isBook } from "../lib/covers";
 
 interface Props {
   album: Album;
@@ -47,7 +47,11 @@ export function Cover({ album, size, fit = "width", radius, className, style, la
         flex: "none",
         borderRadius: radius ?? defaultRadius,
         overflow: "hidden",
-        background: coverBackground(album, Math.max(6, Math.round(size / 13))),
+        // Real art is opaque: paint the cheap flat underlay, not the stripes/spine.
+        background:
+          album.has_cover && !locked
+            ? coverUnderlay(album)
+            : coverBackground(album, Math.max(6, Math.round(size / 13))),
         ...box,
         ...style,
       }}
@@ -90,9 +94,13 @@ export function Cover({ album, size, fit = "width", radius, className, style, la
           )}
           {album.has_cover && (
             <img
-              src={coverUrl(album.id)}
+              src={coverUrl(album.id, {
+                size: size <= THUMB_MAX_SIZE ? "thumb" : "full",
+                version: album.cover_v,
+              })}
               alt=""
               loading="lazy"
+              decoding="async"
               style={{
                 position: "absolute",
                 inset: 0,
diff --git a/web/src/components/PerfPanel.tsx b/web/src/components/PerfPanel.tsx
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9572bd3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/web/src/components/PerfPanel.tsx
@@ -0,0 +1,158 @@
+/** Per-knob performance settings, shown under `?pi=1`. Stored in this browser's
+ * localStorage (see lib/perfSettings.ts) and applied by a reload, because the knobs are
+ * read once at module load. Nothing changes until "Speichern". */
+
+import { useState } from "react";
+
+import {
+  FULL,
+  PERF,
+  PI,
+  resetPerfSettings,
+  savePerfSettings,
+  type PerfSettings,
+} from "../lib/perfSettings";
+
+type BoolKey = { [K in keyof PerfSettings]: PerfSettings[K] extends boolean ? K : never }[keyof PerfSettings];
+type NumKey = { [K in keyof PerfSettings]: PerfSettings[K] extends number ? K : never }[keyof PerfSettings];
+
+const TOGGLES: [BoolKey, string, string][] = [
+  ["ambience", "Animierter Hintergrund", "Canvas im Abspielbildschirm (größter CPU-Verbraucher)"],
+  ["cardBlur", "Weichzeichner auf Karten", "Backdrop-Blur je Album-Karte und Titelzeile"],
+  ["viewTransitions", "Übergänge", "Ein-/Ausblenden beim Öffnen von Gruppen und Alben"],
+  ["decorativeAnimations", "Deko-Animationen", "Blasen im Zimmer, schwimmender Delfin"],
+  ["cardShadows", "Schatten auf Karten", "Schlagschatten unter den Album-Karten"],
+  ["tileShadows", "Schatten auf Kacheln", "Schlagschatten unter den Kacheln im Raster"],
+  ["petAnimations", "Tippen: Tiere bewegen sich", "Aus: Tiere stehen still"],
+  ["tippenBubbles", "Tippen: Blasen", "Aufsteigende Blasen im Hintergrund"],
+  ["tippenViewTransitions", "Tippen: Übergänge", "Ein-/Ausblenden der Bildschirme"],
+  ["serviceWorker", "Service Worker", "Aus: vorhandener Worker wird entfernt"],
+  ["coverWarmup", "Cover vorladen", "Cover im Hintergrund dekodieren"],
+];
+
+const NUMBERS: [NumKey, string, string, number, number, number][] = [
+  ["playbackClockFps", "Fortschrittsbalken: Updates/s", "0 = jeder Frame", 0, 60, 1],
+  ["ambienceScale", "Hintergrund: Auflösung", "Faktor der Canvas-Größe", 0.1, 1, 0.05],
+  ["ambienceMaxPx", "Hintergrund: max. Pixel", "Obergrenze je Achse", 256, 4096, 64],
+  ["ambienceMaxFps", "Hintergrund: max. FPS", "0 = unbegrenzt", 0, 60, 1],
+  ["ambienceMaxBubbles", "Hintergrund: max. Blasen", "0 = unbegrenzt", 0, 500, 5],
+];
+
+const pill = (background: string, color: string) =>
+  ({
+    border: "none",
+    cursor: "pointer",
+    background,
+    color,
+    fontSize: 15,
+    fontWeight: 800,
+    padding: "11px 20px",
+    borderRadius: 999,
+  }) as const;
+
+export function PerfPanel({ onClose }: { onClose: () => void }) {
+  const [draft, setDraft] = useState<PerfSettings>({ ...PERF });
+
+  const save = () => {
+    savePerfSettings(draft);
+    location.reload();
+  };
+  const reset = () => {
+    resetPerfSettings();
+    location.reload();
+  };
+
+  return (
+    <div className="overlay" style={{ zIndex: 7, background: "oklch(15% 0.03 210 / .75)" }}>
+      <div className="sheet" style={{ padding: 28, width: 480, maxHeight: "100%", overflow: "auto" }}>
+        <div style={{ display: "flex", alignItems: "center", gap: 12 }}>
+          <div style={{ fontSize: 20, fontWeight: 900, color: "var(--ink)", flex: 1 }}>
+            ⚡ Leistung
+          </div>
+          <button
+            onClick={onClose}
+            aria-label="Schließen"
+            style={{
+              ...pill("oklch(88% 0.02 210)", "var(--ink)"),
+              fontSize: 18,
+              fontWeight: 900,
+              width: 36,
+              height: 36,
+              padding: 0,
+            }}
+          >
+            ×
+          </button>
+        </div>
+
+        <div style={{ display: "flex", gap: 10, marginTop: 16 }}>
+          <button onClick={() => setDraft({ ...PI })} style={pill("oklch(88% 0.02 210)", "var(--ink)")}>
+            Pi-Vorgabe
+          </button>
+          <button onClick={() => setDraft({ ...FULL })} style={pill("oklch(88% 0.02 210)", "var(--ink)")}>
+            Alles an
+          </button>
+        </div>
+
+        <div style={{ display: "flex", flexDirection: "column", gap: 12, marginTop: 18 }}>
+          {TOGGLES.map(([key, label, hint]) => (
+            <label key={key} style={{ display: "flex", alignItems: "center", gap: 12 }}>
+              <input
+                type="checkbox"
+                checked={draft[key]}
+                onChange={(event) => setDraft({ ...draft, [key]: event.target.checked })}
+                style={{ width: 22, height: 22 }}
+              />
+              <span style={{ display: "flex", flexDirection: "column", gap: 2 }}>
+                <span style={{ fontSize: 14, fontWeight: 800, color: "var(--ink)" }}>{label}</span>
+                <span style={{ fontSize: 12, fontWeight: 600, color: "oklch(50% 0.03 210)" }}>
+                  {hint}
+                </span>
+              </span>
+            </label>
+          ))}
+
+          {NUMBERS.map(([key, label, hint, min, max, step]) => (
+            <label key={key} style={{ display: "flex", flexDirection: "column", gap: 4 }}>
+              <span style={{ fontSize: 14, fontWeight: 800, color: "var(--ink)" }}>{label}</span>
+              <span style={{ fontSize: 12, fontWeight: 600, color: "oklch(50% 0.03 210)" }}>
+                {hint}
+              </span>
+              <input
+                type="number"
+                min={min}
+                max={max}
+                step={step}
+                value={draft[key]}
+                onChange={(event) => {
+                  const value = event.target.valueAsNumber;
+                  if (Number.isFinite(value)) setDraft({ ...draft, [key]: value });
+                }}
+                style={{
+                  padding: "8px 12px",
+                  borderRadius: 10,
+                  border: "2px solid oklch(85% 0.02 210)",
+                  fontSize: 16,
+                  fontWeight: 700,
+                }}
+              />
+            </label>
+          ))}
+
+          <div style={{ display: "flex", gap: 10, marginTop: 6 }}>
+            <button onClick={save} style={pill("var(--accent)", "#fff")}>
+              Speichern &amp; neu laden
+            </button>
+            <button onClick={reset} style={pill("oklch(88% 0.02 210)", "var(--ink)")}>
+              Zurücksetzen
+            </button>
+          </div>
+
+          <div style={{ fontSize: 12, fontWeight: 600, color: "oklch(50% 0.03 210)", lineHeight: 1.5 }}>
+            Wird nur in diesem Browser gespeichert und gilt nur mit <code>?pi=1</code>.
+          </div>
+        </div>
+      </div>
+    </div>
+  );
+}
diff --git a/web/src/components/tippen/AquariumCreatures.tsx b/web/src/components/tippen/AquariumCreatures.tsx
index 83fc09e..4bfcfc6 100644
--- a/web/src/components/tippen/AquariumCreatures.tsx
+++ b/web/src/components/tippen/AquariumCreatures.tsx
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@
 
 import { useEffect, useRef } from "react";
 
-import { LOW_POWER } from "../../lib/lowPower";
+import { PERF } from "../../lib/perfSettings";
 import { creatureById, createSwimmer, pose, stepSwimmer } from "../../lib/tippen/aquarium";
 import type { CreatureId, Swimmer } from "../../lib/tippen/aquarium";
 
@@ -42,7 +42,7 @@ export function AquariumCreatures({ creatures, opacity }: Props) {
     // takes the same door: on that device the point is that nothing runs a frame loop,
     // and the pets are the reward - they should be *there*, they just need not swim.
     const reducedMotion =
-      LOW_POWER || window.matchMedia("(prefers-reduced-motion: reduce)").matches;
+      !PERF.petAnimations || window.matchMedia("(prefers-reduced-motion: reduce)").matches;
     let frame = 0;
     let lastTime = performance.now();
 
diff --git a/web/src/components/tippen/Stage.tsx b/web/src/components/tippen/Stage.tsx
index 42330ae..c18973b 100644
--- a/web/src/components/tippen/Stage.tsx
+++ b/web/src/components/tippen/Stage.tsx
@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@
 import type { ReactNode } from "react";
 
 import type { CreatureId } from "../../lib/tippen/aquarium";
-import { LOW_POWER } from "../../lib/lowPower";
+import { PERF } from "../../lib/perfSettings";
 import { SHOW_AQUARIUM_CREATURES, SHOW_BUBBLES, SHOW_GLASS_BLUR } from "../../lib/tippen/theme";
 import { AquariumCreatures } from "./AquariumCreatures";
 import { Bubbles } from "./Bubbles";
@@ -27,7 +27,7 @@ export function Stage({ children, creatures, dimmed }: Props) {
     <div
       className="tp-stage"
       data-blur={SHOW_GLASS_BLUR ? "on" : "off"}
-      data-anim={LOW_POWER ? "off" : "on"}
+      data-anim={PERF.petAnimations ? "on" : "off"}
     >
       {SHOW_AQUARIUM_CREATURES && <AquariumCreatures creatures={creatures} opacity={dimmed ? 0.25 : 1} />}
       {SHOW_BUBBLES && <Bubbles />}
diff --git a/web/src/hooks/useCoverWarmup.ts b/web/src/hooks/useCoverWarmup.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b462dc9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/web/src/hooks/useCoverWarmup.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,55 @@
+/** Pull every card thumbnail into the browser's caches once, while the kiosk is idle.
+ *
+ * Cover URLs carry a version and are served `immutable`, so once a thumbnail has been
+ * fetched the browser never asks for it again - but the *first* search over the whole
+ * library would otherwise fetch, and decode, hundreds of them while the user waits. This
+ * does that work up front, a few at a time in idle periods. The `Image`s are held so
+ * their decoded bitmaps stay resident: RAM is not the constraint on the machine this is
+ * for (`?pi=1`, see lib/lowPower.ts), the main thread during a keystroke is.
+ */
+
+import { useEffect } from "react";
+
+import { coverUrl } from "../api/client";
+import type { Album } from "../api/types";
+
+const BATCH = 6;
+
+const idle = (run: () => void): void => {
+  if (typeof requestIdleCallback === "function") requestIdleCallback(run, { timeout: 2000 });
+  else setTimeout(run, 50);
+};
+
+/** Module-level on purpose: dropping these would let the browser discard what they hold. */
+const held = new Map<string, HTMLImageElement>();
+
+export function useCoverWarmup(albums: Album[], enabled: boolean): void {
+  useEffect(() => {
+    if (!enabled) return;
+    let cancelled = false;
+    const pending = albums.filter((a) => a.has_cover && !a.locked);
+    let next = 0;
+
+    const step = () => {
+      if (cancelled || next >= pending.length) return;
+      const batch = pending.slice(next, next + BATCH);
+      next += BATCH;
+      void Promise.all(
+        batch.map((album) => {
+          const url = coverUrl(album.id, { size: "thumb", version: album.cover_v });
+          if (held.has(url)) return undefined;
+          const img = new Image();
+          img.decoding = "async";
+          img.src = url;
+          held.set(url, img);
+          return img.decode().catch(() => undefined);
+        }),
+      ).then(() => idle(step));
+    };
+    idle(step);
+
+    return () => {
+      cancelled = true;
+    };
+  }, [albums, enabled]);
+}
diff --git a/web/src/hooks/useEvent.ts b/web/src/hooks/useEvent.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..df57409
--- /dev/null
+++ b/web/src/hooks/useEvent.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,17 @@
+/** A callback with a stable identity that always calls the latest closure.
+ *
+ * For handlers passed to a `memo`ised child: `App` re-renders twice a second while a
+ * track plays (websocket position frames), and a fresh inline handler each time would
+ * defeat `memo` and re-render the whole card grid with it. */
+
+import { useCallback, useLayoutEffect, useRef } from "react";
+
+export function useEvent<Args extends unknown[], Result>(
+  handler: (...args: Args) => Result,
+): (...args: Args) => Result {
+  const latest = useRef(handler);
+  useLayoutEffect(() => {
+    latest.current = handler;
+  });
+  return useCallback((...args: Args) => latest.current(...args), []);
+}
diff --git a/web/src/hooks/useIncrementalCount.ts b/web/src/hooks/useIncrementalCount.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..20e7263
--- /dev/null
+++ b/web/src/hooks/useIncrementalCount.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,68 @@
+/** How many items of a long list to render, growing as the user gets near the end.
+
+Committing every card of a 340-album search result inside one keystroke is what made typing
+feel stuck, and it is work for cards nobody has scrolled to. So a list renders its first
+`initial` items and asks for `step` more whenever a sentinel placed after the list comes
+within a screen of the scroll box's edge, or the keyboard selection reaches the last one
+rendered. A new `resetKey` (another query, group or category) starts over at `initial`, so
+a short search never inherits the length of the previous long one.
+
+Growth runs in a transition: the next keystroke interrupts it rather than waiting for it.
+*/
+
+import { startTransition, useCallback, useEffect, useState } from "react";
+import type { RefObject } from "react";
+
+export function nextCount(count: number, step: number, total: number): number {
+  return Math.min(total, count + step);
+}
+
+export function useIncrementalCount(
+  total: number,
+  initial: number,
+  step: number,
+  resetKey: string,
+  root: RefObject<HTMLElement | null>,
+  selected: number,
+): { visible: number; sentinelRef: (node: HTMLElement | null) => void } {
+  const [state, setState] = useState({ key: resetKey, count: initial });
+  const [sentinel, setSentinel] = useState<HTMLElement | null>(null);
+
+  // Adjusting state during render is React's documented way to reset on a changed input;
+  // an effect would paint one frame of the old, long list first.
+  let count = state.count;
+  if (state.key !== resetKey) {
+    count = initial;
+    setState({ key: resetKey, count });
+  } else if (count < initial) {
+    // The grid measured its real column count after first paint.
+    count = initial;
+  }
+
+  const grow = useCallback(() => {
+    startTransition(() =>
+      setState((previous) => ({ ...previous, count: nextCount(Math.max(previous.count, initial), step, total) })),
+    );
+  }, [initial, step, total]);
+
+  // Recreated on every growth: an observer only reports *changes*, so one that stays
+  // attached to a sentinel that is still on screen would never ask a second time.
+  useEffect(() => {
+    if (!sentinel || count >= total) return;
+    const observer = new IntersectionObserver(
+      (entries) => {
+        if (entries.some((entry) => entry.isIntersecting)) grow();
+      },
+      { root: root.current, rootMargin: "100% 0px" },
+    );
+    observer.observe(sentinel);
+    return () => observer.disconnect();
+  }, [sentinel, count, total, grow, root]);
+
+  // Arrowing down past the fold: the selected item must exist to be scrolled to.
+  useEffect(() => {
+    if (selected >= count - 1 && count < total) grow();
+  }, [selected, count, total, grow]);
+
+  return { visible: Math.min(count, total), sentinelRef: setSentinel };
+}
diff --git a/web/src/lib/__tests__/keyboard.test.ts b/web/src/lib/__tests__/keyboard.test.ts
index c97e14e..7aeaa0c 100644
--- a/web/src/lib/__tests__/keyboard.test.ts
+++ b/web/src/lib/__tests__/keyboard.test.ts
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
 
 import type { Album } from "../../api/types";
-import { handleKey, initialUiState, selectionAlbumAt, selectionAt, type UiState } from "../keyboard";
+import { handleKey, initialUiState, isRootShelf, selectionAlbumAt, selectionAt, type UiState } from "../keyboard";
 import { buildSearchIndex, normalize, results as computeResults, type Results } from "../search";
 
 function album(id: string, over: Partial<Album> = {}): Album {
@@ -291,7 +291,7 @@ describe("keyboard", () => {
 
     const searching = { ...inPlay, view: "browse" as const };
     expect(press("Escape", searching)).toEqual([
-      { type: "ui", patch: { search: "", selIndex: 0 } },
+      { type: "ui", patch: { search: "", searchOpen: false, selIndex: 0 } },
     ]);
 
     const inTracks = { ...searching, search: "" };
@@ -471,4 +471,33 @@ describe("selectionAt", () => {
     const ui: UiState = { ...initialUiState, search: "zzzznothing" };
     expect(selectionAt(resultsFor(ui), 0)).toBeNull();
   });
+
+  it("opens the search box on / and closes it with ESC before anything else", () => {
+    expect(press("/")).toContainEqual({
+      type: "ui",
+      patch: { view: "browse", searchOpen: true },
+    });
+    const open = { ...initialUiState, searchOpen: true };
+    expect(press("Escape", open)).toEqual([
+      { type: "ui", patch: { search: "", searchOpen: false, selIndex: 0 } },
+    ]);
+  });
+
+  it("drops the root shelves as soon as the search box is up", () => {
+    expect(isRootShelf(initialUiState)).toBe(true);
+    expect(isRootShelf({ ...initialUiState, search: "a" })).toBe(false);
+    expect(isRootShelf({ ...initialUiState, searchOpen: true })).toBe(false);
+  });
+
+  it("flips between album and title search with / while the box is up", () => {
+    const open = { ...initialUiState, searchOpen: true, search: "ab" };
+    expect(press("/", open)).toContainEqual({
+      type: "ui",
+      patch: { mode: "tracks", searchOpen: true, selIndex: 0 },
+    });
+    expect(press("/", { ...open, mode: "tracks" })).toContainEqual({
+      type: "ui",
+      patch: { mode: "albums", searchOpen: true, selIndex: 0 },
+    });
+  });
 });
diff --git a/web/src/lib/__tests__/perfSettings.test.ts b/web/src/lib/__tests__/perfSettings.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7a102d8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/web/src/lib/__tests__/perfSettings.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,55 @@
+import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
+
+const store = new Map<string, string>();
+
+async function load(search: string) {
+  vi.resetModules();
+  vi.stubGlobal("location", { search });
+  vi.stubGlobal("localStorage", {
+    getItem: (k: string) => store.get(k) ?? null,
+    setItem: (k: string, v: string) => void store.set(k, v),
+    removeItem: (k: string) => void store.delete(k),
+  });
+  return import("../perfSettings");
+}
+
+describe("perfSettings", () => {
+  beforeEach(() => store.clear());
+  afterEach(() => vi.unstubAllGlobals());
+
+  it("is full-fat without pi, ignoring stored values", async () => {
+    store.set("musicmouse.perf.v1", JSON.stringify({ ambience: false }));
+    const m = await load("");
+    expect(m.PERF_ENABLED).toBe(false);
+    expect(m.PERF).toEqual(m.FULL);
+  });
+
+  it("uses the pi preset under ?pi=1", async () => {
+    const m = await load("?pi=1");
+    expect(m.PERF).toEqual(m.PI);
+  });
+
+  it("merges stored overrides over the preset", async () => {
+    store.set("musicmouse.perf.v1", JSON.stringify({ ambience: true, playbackClockFps: 30 }));
+    const m = await load("?pi=1");
+    expect(m.PERF.ambience).toBe(true);
+    expect(m.PERF.playbackClockFps).toBe(30);
+    expect(m.PERF.cardBlur).toBe(m.PI.cardBlur);
+  });
+
+  it("drops wrong-typed fields and survives corrupt JSON", async () => {
+    store.set("musicmouse.perf.v1", JSON.stringify({ ambience: "yes", ambienceScale: null }));
+    expect((await load("?pi=1")).PERF).toEqual((await load("?pi=1")).PI);
+    store.set("musicmouse.perf.v1", "{nope");
+    const m = await load("?pi=1");
+    expect(m.PERF).toEqual(m.PI);
+  });
+
+  it("round-trips through save and reset", async () => {
+    const m = await load("?pi=1");
+    m.savePerfSettings({ ...m.PI, cardBlur: true });
+    expect((await load("?pi=1")).PERF.cardBlur).toBe(true);
+    m.resetPerfSettings();
+    expect((await load("?pi=1")).PERF.cardBlur).toBe(false);
+  });
+});
diff --git a/web/src/lib/__tests__/search.test.ts b/web/src/lib/__tests__/search.test.ts
index 9198352..464ebd0 100644
--- a/web/src/lib/__tests__/search.test.ts
+++ b/web/src/lib/__tests__/search.test.ts
@@ -3,6 +3,8 @@ import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
 import type { Album, Track } from "../../api/types";
 import {
   buildSearchIndex,
+  effectiveSearch,
+  listMode,
   MAX_SONG_HITS,
   normalize,
   results as computeResults,
@@ -111,14 +113,14 @@ describe("songMatches", () => {
     expect(query({ mode: "tracks", search: "geheime" }).songs).toEqual([]);
   });
 
-  it("caps an empty query, which would otherwise be the whole library", () => {
+  it("caps a query that matches most of the library", () => {
     const many = Array.from({ length: 60 }, (_, i) =>
       album(`m${i}`, { tracks: [track(`Lied ${i}`)] }),
     );
     const index = buildSearchIndex(many);
     const hits = computeResults({
       index,
-      search: "",
+      search: "lied",
       mode: "tracks",
       group: null,
       category: null,
@@ -129,3 +131,28 @@ describe("songMatches", () => {
     expect(hits.at(-1)!.title).toBe(`Lied ${MAX_SONG_HITS - 1}`);
   });
 });
+
+describe("minimum query length", () => {
+  it("ignores a single letter and anything that normalizes to one", () => {
+    expect(effectiveSearch("e")).toBe("");
+    expect(effectiveSearch(" é ")).toBe("");
+    expect(effectiveSearch("ab")).toBe("ab");
+    expect(effectiveSearch("a b")).toBe("a b");
+  });
+
+  it("leaves the screen alone for one letter and filters from two", () => {
+    const index = buildSearchIndex([album("1"), album("2")]);
+    const base = { index, mode: "albums" as const, group: "music" as Group, category: null };
+    expect(listMode({ ...base, search: "a" })).toBe("categories");
+    expect(computeResults({ ...base, search: "a" }).albums).toHaveLength(0);
+    expect(listMode({ ...base, search: "al" })).toBe("albums");
+    expect(computeResults({ ...base, search: "al" }).albums).toHaveLength(2);
+  });
+
+  it("shows no titles until two letters are typed", () => {
+    const base = { index: INDEX, mode: "tracks" as const, group: null, category: null };
+    expect(computeResults({ ...base, search: "" }).songs).toEqual([]);
+    expect(computeResults({ ...base, search: "v" }).songs).toEqual([]);
+    expect(computeResults({ ...base, search: "va" }).songs.length).toBeGreaterThan(0);
+  });
+});
diff --git a/web/src/lib/covers.ts b/web/src/lib/covers.ts
index 3873b6e..d8f134b 100644
--- a/web/src/lib/covers.ts
+++ b/web/src/lib/covers.ts
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@
  */
 
 import type { Album, AlbumKind, PlayerState } from "../api/types";
+import { PERF } from "./perfSettings";
 import { GROUP_HUE } from "./theme";
 
 export const isBook = (album: Album): boolean => album.kind === "book";
@@ -37,15 +38,18 @@ function stripes(album: Album, width: number): string {
   );
 }
 
-/** A book spine: page edges on the right, a darker board on the left. */
+/** A book spine: page edges on the right, a darker board on the left.
+ *
+ * Stops are sRGB hex on purpose - see the note on `.stage` in app.css: an oklch stop
+ * makes Gecko interpolate in Oklab on the CPU at every display-list build, and these
+ * four gradients sit under every book card. The page edges are oklch(97% 0.02 55) and
+ * oklch(90% 0.03 55) (`GROUP_HUE.audiobooks`), the ridges oklch(98% 0 0 / .35). */
 export function spine(album: Album): string {
   const [primary, secondary] = colours(album);
-  const hue = GROUP_HUE.audiobooks;
   return [
-    `linear-gradient(90deg, transparent 0 95%, oklch(97% 0.02 ${hue}) 95% 97.5%,` +
-      ` oklch(90% 0.03 ${hue}) 97.5% 100%)`,
-    "linear-gradient(90deg, transparent 0 3.5%, oklch(98% 0 0 / .35) 3.5% 4.3%," +
-      " transparent 4.3% 7%, oklch(98% 0 0 / .35) 7% 7.8%, transparent 7.8%)",
+    "linear-gradient(90deg, transparent 0 95%, #fff2e9 95% 97.5%, #efd9cc 97.5% 100%)",
+    "linear-gradient(90deg, transparent 0 3.5%, #f8f8f859 3.5% 4.3%," +
+      " transparent 4.3% 7%, #f8f8f859 7% 7.8%, transparent 7.8%)",
     `linear-gradient(90deg, ${secondary} 0 11%, ${primary} 11% 13%, transparent 13%)`,
     `linear-gradient(155deg, ${primary} 0%, ${secondary} 100%)`,
   ].join(",");
@@ -55,6 +59,17 @@ export function coverBackground(album: Album, stripeWidth: number): string {
   return isBook(album) ? spine(album) : stripes(album, stripeWidth);
 }
 
+/** What sits under a cover that has real art. The art is opaque, so the stripes or the
+ * four-gradient spine would be painted for nothing - on a 340-card grid that is real
+ * display-list work. A flat primary colour is all a still-loading image needs; a book
+ * keeps one cheap gradient for the page edges its clip leaves showing on the right. */
+export function coverUnderlay(album: Album): string {
+  const [primary] = colours(album);
+  return isBook(album)
+    ? `linear-gradient(90deg, ${primary} 0 95%, #fff2e9 95% 97.5%, #efd9cc 97.5% 100%)`
+    : primary;
+}
+
 /** The card's own tint: warm paper for books, cool glass for music. Amber
  * (`GROUP_HUE.audiobooks`) rather than a duller yellow-brown, so it reads as rich
  * rather than washed-out. */
@@ -63,8 +78,16 @@ export const cardBackground = (album: Album): string =>
     ? `oklch(92% 0.09 ${GROUP_HUE.audiobooks} / .7)`
     : `oklch(95% 0.015 ${GROUP_HUE.music} / .66)`;
 
+/** One blurred shadow per card, up to ~340 of them: dropped under `?pi=1`, where a plain
+ * translucent card reads fine and the shadow is a per-card blur render task. Books keep
+ * their two inset "board" bands, which are cheap and are what make them look like books. */
 export const cardShadow = (album: Album): string =>
-  isBook(album)
+  !PERF.cardShadows
+    ? isBook(album)
+      ? `inset -7px 0 0 oklch(86% 0.09 ${GROUP_HUE.audiobooks} / .7), ` +
+        `inset -11px 0 0 oklch(78% 0.09 ${GROUP_HUE.audiobooks} / .7)`
+      : "none"
+    : isBook(album)
     ? `inset -7px 0 0 oklch(86% 0.09 ${GROUP_HUE.audiobooks} / .7), ` +
       `inset -11px 0 0 oklch(78% 0.09 ${GROUP_HUE.audiobooks} / .7), ` +
       `0 6px 18px oklch(15% 0.05 ${GROUP_HUE.music} / .35)`
diff --git a/web/src/lib/keyboard.ts b/web/src/lib/keyboard.ts
index 9ddd969..508922d 100644
--- a/web/src/lib/keyboard.ts
+++ b/web/src/lib/keyboard.ts
@@ -15,6 +15,8 @@ import type { Group, Mode, Results } from "./search";
 
 export interface UiState {
   search: string;
+  /** `/` was pressed: show the search box before the first letter arrives. */
+  searchOpen: boolean;
   mode: Mode;
   /** `null` is the bare root screen (three shelves); otherwise which one is open. */
   group: Group | null;
@@ -41,6 +43,7 @@ export interface UiState {
 
 export const initialUiState: UiState = {
   search: "",
+  searchOpen: false,
   mode: "albums",
   group: null,
   category: null,
@@ -179,7 +182,9 @@ function moveSelection(state: UiState, results: Results, dx: number, dy: number)
  * should be one step too, not two, regardless of whether a category was reached that
  * way or by opening the group first. Always safe to call. */
 export function browseBackActions(state: UiState): Action[] {
-  if (state.search) return [{ type: "ui", patch: { search: "", selIndex: 0 } }];
+  if (state.search || state.searchOpen) {
+    return [{ type: "ui", patch: { search: "", searchOpen: false, selIndex: 0 } }];
+  }
   if (state.mode === "tracks") return [{ type: "ui", patch: { mode: "albums", selIndex: 0 } }];
   return [{ type: "ui", patch: { group: null, category: null, selIndex: 0 } }];
 }
@@ -201,9 +206,28 @@ function escape(state: UiState): Action[] {
   return browseBackActions(state);
 }
 
-/** The true root: nothing chosen yet, rendered as three shelves rather than a list. */
+/** Whether the search box is on screen: something typed, `/` pressed, or track search. */
+export function searchBoxShown(state: UiState): boolean {
+  return state.search.length > 0 || state.searchOpen || state.mode === "tracks";
+}
+
+/** The true root: nothing chosen yet, rendered as three shelves rather than a list. The
+ * shelves go away the moment the search box appears, before there is a query to filter by. */
 export function isRootShelf(state: UiState): boolean {
-  return state.group === null && !state.search && state.mode === "albums" && state.category === null;
+  return state.group === null && !searchBoxShown(state) && state.category === null;
+}
+
+/** Album search <-> title search, keeping whatever has been typed. `searchOpen` keeps the
+ * box up when the switch lands on albums with nothing typed, where it would otherwise
+ * vanish and bring the shelves back. */
+export function toggleModeActions(state: UiState): Action[] {
+  return [
+    { type: "pop", freq: 460 },
+    {
+      type: "ui",
+      patch: { mode: state.mode === "tracks" ? "albums" : "tracks", searchOpen: true, selIndex: 0 },
+    },
+  ];
 }
 
 export interface KeyEvent {
@@ -340,7 +364,9 @@ export function handleKey(
       ];
     }
     case "/":
-      return [{ type: "ui", patch: { view: "browse" } }];
+      // With the box already up, `/` flips what it searches; otherwise it opens it.
+      if (browsing && searchBoxShown(state)) return toggleModeActions(state);
+      return [{ type: "ui", patch: { view: "browse", searchOpen: true } }];
 
     case "ArrowRight":
       if (event.shiftKey) return [{ type: "seek", delta: SEEK_STEP }];
diff --git a/web/src/lib/lowPower.ts b/web/src/lib/lowPower.ts
index 9402ba5..7796a85 100644
--- a/web/src/lib/lowPower.ts
+++ b/web/src/lib/lowPower.ts
@@ -44,15 +44,11 @@
  * answerable by editing the address bar.
  */
 
-/** True when the page was loaded with `?pi=1`. */
-export const LOW_POWER = readLowPowerFlag();
+import { PERF } from "./perfSettings";
 
-function readLowPowerFlag(): boolean {
-  // `location` is absent under vitest's default node environment.
-  if (typeof location === "undefined") return false;
-  const value = new URLSearchParams(location.search).get("pi");
-  return value === "1" || value === "true";
-}
+// Superseded as a single switch: every knob below and in theme.ts now comes from
+// `PERF` (lib/perfSettings.ts), which `?pi=1` seeds and the settings dialog overrides.
+// This header is kept for the measurements it records.
 
 export interface AmbienceQuality {
   /** Multiplies the canvas backing store relative to its on-screen size, before
@@ -80,9 +76,12 @@ export interface AmbienceQuality {
  * canvas off there entirely. Kept, and kept accurate, because it is the setting that
  * matters the moment anyone turns the canvas back on for a weak device - the half-scale
  * backing store is what took it from 53.5% to 25%. */
-export const AMBIENCE_QUALITY: AmbienceQuality = LOW_POWER
-  ? { resolutionScale: 0.5, maxBackingStorePx: 1280, maxFps: 30, maxBubbles: 60 }
-  : { resolutionScale: 1, maxBackingStorePx: 4096, maxFps: 0, maxBubbles: 0 };
+export const AMBIENCE_QUALITY: AmbienceQuality = {
+  resolutionScale: PERF.ambienceScale,
+  maxBackingStorePx: PERF.ambienceMaxPx,
+  maxFps: PERF.ambienceMaxFps,
+  maxBubbles: PERF.ambienceMaxBubbles,
+};
 
 /** How many times a second the interpolated playback position may push a new React
  * render. 0 means "every animation frame", which is what it has always done.
@@ -96,4 +95,4 @@ export const AMBIENCE_QUALITY: AmbienceQuality = LOW_POWER
  *
  * Only bites while something is playing, so it is not in the idle table above.
  */
-export const PLAYBACK_CLOCK_FPS = LOW_POWER ? 10 : 0;
+export const PLAYBACK_CLOCK_FPS = PERF.playbackClockFps;
diff --git a/web/src/lib/perfSettings.ts b/web/src/lib/perfSettings.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6d107f5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/web/src/lib/perfSettings.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,147 @@
+/** Per-knob performance settings, the granular successor to the old all-or-nothing `?pi=1`.
+ *
+ * `?pi=1` still switches the panel on, but no longer flips everything at once: it selects
+ * the `PI` preset as the starting point, and each knob can then be overridden from the
+ * settings dialog (`PerfPanel`) and is stored in this browser's localStorage. Without
+ * `?pi=1` the stored values are ignored and the full-fat `FULL` preset applies, so a
+ * laptop opening the same page always gets the full version - which is what makes "is this
+ * the profile or the hardware?" answerable by editing the address bar.
+ *
+ * Read once at module load. The knobs feed module-level constants (`SHOW_AMBIENCE`, ...)
+ * and the service worker registration, so applying a change means a page reload.
+ *
+ * `SHOW_GLASS_BLUR` is deliberately not a knob: on the Pi it measured five times *worse*
+ * with the blur off. See the table in lib/lowPower.ts.
+ */
+
+export interface PerfSettings {
+  /** Fade/slide animation when entering a group/category or opening the album modal. */
+  viewTransitions: boolean;
+  /** The play view's animated canvas background (gradient + bubbles). */
+  ambience: boolean;
+  /** Real backdrop blur on each repeated glass card/row. */
+  cardBlur: boolean;
+  /** Decorative CSS loops: the room page's bubbles and the dolphin mascot. */
+  decorativeAnimations: boolean;
+  /** Drop shadows under covers in the album cards. */
+  cardShadows: boolean;
+  /** Drop shadows under tiles in the browse grid. */
+  tileShadows: boolean;
+  /** Typing game: pets move (off = placed but held still). */
+  petAnimations: boolean;
+  /** Typing game: rising bubbles. */
+  tippenBubbles: boolean;
+  /** Typing game: fade/slide view transitions. */
+  tippenViewTransitions: boolean;
+  /** Register the service worker (off also unregisters an existing one). */
+  serviceWorker: boolean;
+  /** Pre-decode covers in the background. */
+  coverWarmup: boolean;
+  /** Max playback-position renders per second. 0 = every animation frame. */
+  playbackClockFps: number;
+  /** Ambient canvas backing-store scale relative to its on-screen size. */
+  ambienceScale: number;
+  /** Ceiling on either ambient canvas backing-store axis, in px. */
+  ambienceMaxPx: number;
+  /** Ambient canvas frame-rate cap. 0 = whatever the display offers. */
+  ambienceMaxFps: number;
+  /** Ceiling on ambient bubbles alive at once. 0 = unlimited. */
+  ambienceMaxBubbles: number;
+}
+
+/** Today's behaviour without `?pi=1`. */
+export const FULL: PerfSettings = {
+  viewTransitions: true,
+  ambience: true,
+  cardBlur: true,
+  decorativeAnimations: true,
+  cardShadows: true,
+  tileShadows: true,
+  petAnimations: true,
+  tippenBubbles: true,
+  tippenViewTransitions: true,
+  serviceWorker: true,
+  coverWarmup: false,
+  playbackClockFps: 0,
+  ambienceScale: 1,
+  ambienceMaxPx: 4096,
+  ambienceMaxFps: 0,
+  ambienceMaxBubbles: 0,
+};
+
+/** Today's behaviour with `?pi=1`. */
+export const PI: PerfSettings = {
+  viewTransitions: false,
+  ambience: false,
+  cardBlur: false,
+  decorativeAnimations: false,
+  cardShadows: false,
+  tileShadows: false,
+  petAnimations: false,
+  tippenBubbles: false,
+  tippenViewTransitions: false,
+  serviceWorker: false,
+  coverWarmup: true,
+  playbackClockFps: 10,
+  ambienceScale: 0.5,
+  ambienceMaxPx: 1280,
+  ambienceMaxFps: 30,
+  ambienceMaxBubbles: 60,
+};
+
+export const STORAGE_KEY = "musicmouse.perf.v1";
+
+/** True when the page was loaded with `?pi=1`. */
+export const PERF_ENABLED = readPiFlag();
+
+function readPiFlag(): boolean {
+  // `location` is absent under vitest's default node environment.
+  if (typeof location === "undefined") return false;
+  const value = new URLSearchParams(location.search).get("pi");
+  return value === "1" || value === "true";
+}
+
+/** Keep only stored fields whose type matches the preset's; anything else is dropped. */
+function sanitize(raw: unknown): Partial<PerfSettings> {
+  if (typeof raw !== "object" || raw === null) return {};
+  const out: Record<string, boolean | number> = {};
+  for (const [key, def] of Object.entries(PI)) {
+    const value = (raw as Record<string, unknown>)[key];
+    if (typeof value === typeof def && (typeof value !== "number" || Number.isFinite(value))) {
+      out[key] = value as boolean | number;
+    }
+  }
+  return out as Partial<PerfSettings>;
+}
+
+export function loadStoredPerf(): Partial<PerfSettings> {
+  try {
+    const text = localStorage.getItem(STORAGE_KEY);
+    return text ? sanitize(JSON.parse(text)) : {};
+  } catch {
+    return {};
+  }
+}
+
+export function loadPerfSettings(): PerfSettings {
+  if (!PERF_ENABLED) return { ...FULL };
+  return { ...PI, ...loadStoredPerf() };
+}
+
+export function savePerfSettings(settings: PerfSettings): void {
+  try {
+    localStorage.setItem(STORAGE_KEY, JSON.stringify(settings));
+  } catch {
+    // Storage blocked: the dialog still reloads, it just comes back with the preset.
+  }
+}
+
+export function resetPerfSettings(): void {
+  try {
+    localStorage.removeItem(STORAGE_KEY);
+  } catch {
+    // ignore
+  }
+}
+
+export const PERF: PerfSettings = loadPerfSettings();
diff --git a/web/src/lib/search.ts b/web/src/lib/search.ts
index 0584a80..4458615 100644
--- a/web/src/lib/search.ts
+++ b/web/src/lib/search.ts
@@ -53,6 +53,16 @@ function searchWords(value: string): string[] {
     .filter(Boolean);
 }
 
+/** One letter matches most of the library, which is a screen of noise and not a
+ * search - the first character is the user finding their footing, not asking. */
+export const MIN_SEARCH_CHARS = 2;
+
+/** The query that actually filters: `""` until there are at least `MIN_SEARCH_CHARS`
+ * letters to go on, so the screen stays where it is while the first one is typed. */
+export function effectiveSearch(value: string): string {
+  return searchWords(value).join("").length >= MIN_SEARCH_CHARS ? value : "";
+}
+
 /** Every word has to show up somewhere in the haystack, in any order. */
 function matchesWords(haystack: string, words: string[]): boolean {
   return words.every((word) => haystack.includes(word));
@@ -185,7 +195,7 @@ function trackPool(query: BrowseQuery): TrackEntry[] {
 /** Which of the three lists the browse view is showing. */
 export function listMode(query: BrowseQuery): "tracks" | "albums" | "categories" {
   if (query.mode === "tracks") return "tracks";
-  if (query.search || query.category) return "albums";
+  if (effectiveSearch(query.search) || query.category) return "albums";
   return "categories";
 }
 
@@ -198,7 +208,7 @@ export function categoryMatches(query: BrowseQuery): Category[] {
 
 export function albumMatches(query: BrowseQuery): Album[] {
   if (query.mode === "tracks") return [];
-  const words = searchWords(query.search);
+  const words = searchWords(effectiveSearch(query.search));
   if (!words.length && !query.category) return [];
   let candidates = albumPool(query);
   if (query.category) candidates = candidates.filter((e) => e.album.category === query.category);
@@ -206,15 +216,17 @@ export function albumMatches(query: BrowseQuery): Album[] {
   return candidates.map((e) => e.album);
 }
 
-/** Capped, because an empty query over 900 podcast episodes is not a useful screen. */
+/** Capped, because a query like "e" over 900 podcast episodes is not a useful screen. */
 export const MAX_SONG_HITS = 40;
 
 export function songMatches(query: BrowseQuery): SongHit[] {
   if (query.mode !== "tracks") return [];
-  const words = searchWords(query.search);
+  const words = searchWords(effectiveSearch(query.search));
+  // Titles are five thousand rows: nothing until there is a query, not the first 40.
+  if (!words.length) return [];
   const hits: SongHit[] = [];
   for (const track of trackPool(query)) {
-    if (words.length && !matchesWords(track.haystack, words)) continue;
+    if (!matchesWords(track.haystack, words)) continue;
     hits.push({
       album: track.album,
       index: track.index,
diff --git a/web/src/lib/theme.ts b/web/src/lib/theme.ts
index b9e059c..8443864 100644
--- a/web/src/lib/theme.ts
+++ b/web/src/lib/theme.ts
@@ -11,7 +11,7 @@
 
 import type { CSSProperties } from "react";
 
-import { LOW_POWER } from "./lowPower";
+import { PERF } from "./perfSettings";
 import type { Group } from "./search";
 import type { UiState } from "./keyboard";
 
@@ -33,7 +33,7 @@ export const ROW_SPACING = 25;
 /** Fade the album/category grid in (with a slight upward slide) when a group or
  * category is entered, and the album modal in when it opens. One animation per
  * container, not per card, so cost stays flat regardless of grid size. */
-export const ANIMATE_VIEW_TRANSITIONS = !LOW_POWER;
+export const ANIMATE_VIEW_TRANSITIONS = PERF.viewTransitions;
 
 /** Frost the glass panels/cards/rows with a real backdrop blur.
  *
@@ -54,7 +54,7 @@ export const SHOW_GLASS_BLUR = true;
  * loop that repaints the full viewport is a floor you cannot get under while it runs at
  * all, and on a Pi 4 that floor is too high. Nothing else in the app needs a frame loop,
  * so with this off the browser has nothing to do between one keypress and the next. */
-export const SHOW_AMBIENCE = !LOW_POWER;
+export const SHOW_AMBIENCE = PERF.ambience;
 
 /** Frost the *repeated* glass surfaces - every album card in the grid, every row in a
  * track list - as opposed to the handful of panels wrapped around them.
@@ -65,14 +65,14 @@ export const SHOW_AMBIENCE = !LOW_POWER;
  * card is one live backdrop copy out of three hundred sitting directly over the
  * animated canvas, so every canvas frame re-blurs all of them. Measured on the Pi with
  * a full album grid on screen, Chromium: see lib/lowPower.ts. */
-export const SHOW_CARD_BLUR = !LOW_POWER;
+export const SHOW_CARD_BLUR = PERF.cardBlur;
 
 /** Run the purely decorative CSS animation loops: the room page's bubble field and
  * the dolphin mascot's bob/swim. Off under `?pi=1`. On their own they measured as
  * noise, but "nothing on this screen moves by itself" is a property worth having
  * outright rather than a sum of small wins - a compositor with no animation to service
  * has nothing to wake up for. */
-export const SHOW_DECORATIVE_ANIMATIONS = !LOW_POWER;
+export const SHOW_DECORATIVE_ANIMATIONS = PERF.decorativeAnimations;
 
 // ------------------------------------------------------------------ colors --
 
diff --git a/web/src/lib/tippen/theme.ts b/web/src/lib/tippen/theme.ts
index 00c89b7..d511f1e 100644
--- a/web/src/lib/tippen/theme.ts
+++ b/web/src/lib/tippen/theme.ts
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@
  * through components. The hue lives in styles/app.css because CSS is where it is used;
  * it is repeated here only for the canvas, which cannot read a custom property. */
 
-import { LOW_POWER } from "../lowPower";
+import { PERF } from "../perfSettings";
 
 /** The turquoise lagoon. Music is 210, Hörbücher 55, "Mein Zimmer" 300. */
 export const HUE = 175;
@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ export const SHOW_GLASS_BLUR = true;
 
 /** The decorative rising bubbles behind everything. A dozen elements on a CSS transform
  * loop - off under `?pi=1`, like every other loop in the app. */
-export const SHOW_BUBBLES = !LOW_POWER;
+export const SHOW_BUBBLES = PERF.tippenBubbles;
 
 /** The earned pets swimming behind every screen. The reward that is always in view - off
  * only to rule it out when chasing a performance problem.
@@ -29,7 +29,7 @@ export const SHOW_BUBBLES = !LOW_POWER;
 export const SHOW_AQUARIUM_CREATURES = true;
 
 /** Fade screens in on entry. */
-export const ANIMATE_VIEW_TRANSITIONS = !LOW_POWER;
+export const ANIMATE_VIEW_TRANSITIONS = PERF.tippenViewTransitions;
 
 /** Show the on-screen keyboard with the finger colours. "auto" fades it out key by key
  * as each one is mastered - the scaffold that removes itself, which is the whole point
diff --git a/web/src/main.tsx b/web/src/main.tsx
index d075851..8194c57 100644
--- a/web/src/main.tsx
+++ b/web/src/main.tsx
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@ import { StrictMode } from "react";
 import { createRoot } from "react-dom/client";
 
 import { App } from "./App";
+import { PERF } from "./lib/perfSettings";
 import "./styles/app.css";
 import "./styles/room.css";
 import "./styles/tippen.css";
@@ -15,8 +16,20 @@ createRoot(document.getElementById("root")!).render(
 // Registered after load so it never competes with the first paint. It is what makes
 // iOS offer "Zum Home-Bildschirm" as an app rather than a bookmark; see public/sw.js
 // for what it does and deliberately does not cache.
+//
+// Not under `?pi=1`: that is the kiosk, which *is* the server. There is nothing to
+// install, and the worker only adds a fetch handler (and a `cache.put` of every response)
+// in front of requests that are already on localhost. Any worker an earlier visit left
+// behind is removed so the kiosk stops paying for it.
 if ("serviceWorker" in navigator && import.meta.env.PROD) {
   window.addEventListener("load", () => {
+    if (!PERF.serviceWorker) {
+      void navigator.serviceWorker
+        .getRegistrations()
+        .then((registrations) => Promise.all(registrations.map((r) => r.unregister())))
+        .catch(() => undefined);
+      return;
+    }
     void navigator.serviceWorker.register("/sw.js").catch(() => {
       // A plain http:// origin that is not localhost cannot register one. The app
       // works exactly the same, it just cannot be installed.
diff --git a/web/src/styles/app.css b/web/src/styles/app.css
index 55ff3fb..95d2723 100644
--- a/web/src/styles/app.css
+++ b/web/src/styles/app.css
@@ -104,12 +104,11 @@ button {
   height: 100vh;
   height: 100dvh;
   overflow: hidden;
-  background: linear-gradient(
-    180deg,
-    oklch(55% 0.07 210) 0%,
-    oklch(38% 0.06 210) 45%,
-    var(--sea-deep) 100%
-  );
+  /* Gradient stops are plain sRGB hex, not oklch(): a gradient with an oklch stop
+     interpolates in Oklab, which Gecko expands stop by stop on the CPU every time the
+     display list is rebuilt - about 15% of a Pi-profile's busy time. Values are the
+     oklch(55% 0.07 210) / (38% 0.06 210) / (20% 0.045 210) they replace. */
+  background: linear-gradient(180deg, #397d88 0%, #0e4b54 45%, #001b21 100%);
 }
 
 /* Still used by the room-control page's own `<Bubbles>` field (`RoomView.tsx`) - the
@@ -270,7 +269,7 @@ button {
   flex: none;
   border-radius: 999px;
   font-size: 17px;
-  background: linear-gradient(160deg, oklch(97% 0.01 210 / 0.38), oklch(97% 0.01 210 / 0.12));
+  background: linear-gradient(160deg, #eef7f961, #eef7f91f) /* oklch(97% 0.01 210 / .38 -> .12) */;
   backdrop-filter: blur(8px);
   -webkit-backdrop-filter: blur(8px);
   border: 1px solid oklch(97% 0.01 210 / 0.4);
@@ -282,7 +281,7 @@ button {
 /* A frosted panel wrapped around a shelf/list of rows so they read as a distinct
    surface floating over the stage gradient, rather than flat text on a gradient. */
 .glass-panel {
-  background: linear-gradient(160deg, oklch(97% 0.01 210 / 0.14), oklch(97% 0.01 210 / 0.05));
+  background: linear-gradient(160deg, #eef7f924, #eef7f90d) /* oklch(97% 0.01 210 / .14 -> .05) */;
   backdrop-filter: blur(10px);
   -webkit-backdrop-filter: blur(10px);
   border: 1px solid oklch(97% 0.01 210 / 0.16);
@@ -344,3 +343,89 @@ input[type="number"],
 input[type="range"] {
   font: inherit;
 }
+
+/* The search field. Big on purpose: typing is how the whole app is driven, so where the
+   letters land has to be unmissable. */
+.searchbox-row {
+  flex: none;
+  display: flex;
+  flex-direction: column;
+  align-items: center;
+  gap: 6px;
+  margin: 6px 32px 10px;
+}
+
+.searchbox {
+  display: flex;
+  align-items: center;
+  gap: 16px;
+  width: min(680px, 100%);
+  min-height: 68px;
+  box-sizing: border-box;
+  padding: 10px 26px 10px 14px;
+  border-radius: 999px;
+  background: var(--paper);
+  color: var(--ink);
+  border: 3px solid var(--accent);
+  box-shadow: 0 6px 22px var(--shadow);
+  font-size: 30px;
+  font-weight: 800;
+}
+
+.searchbox-mode {
+  flex: none;
+  font-size: 16px;
+  padding: 8px 14px;
+  border-radius: 999px;
+  background: var(--ink);
+  color: #fff;
+  border: none;
+  font: inherit;
+  font-size: 16px;
+  cursor: pointer;
+}
+
+.searchbox-mode:hover {
+  background: var(--accent);
+}
+
+.searchbox-text {
+  flex: 1;
+  min-width: 0;
+  overflow: hidden;
+  text-overflow: ellipsis;
+  white-space: nowrap;
+}
+
+.searchbox-placeholder {
+  color: oklch(30% 0.04 210 / .45);
+}
+
+.searchbox-caret {
+  display: inline-block;
+  width: 3px;
+  height: 1em;
+  margin-left: 3px;
+  vertical-align: -0.12em;
+  background: var(--accent);
+  animation: searchbox-blink 1.1s steps(1) infinite;
+}
+
+/* Empty: the caret sits where the first letter will land, ahead of the placeholder. */
+.searchbox[data-empty] .searchbox-caret {
+  margin: 0 3px 0 0;
+}
+
+.searchbox-note {
+  color: oklch(90% 0.02 210 / .85);
+  font-size: 15px;
+  font-weight: 700;
+}
+
+@keyframes searchbox-blink {
+  50% { opacity: 0; }
+}
+
+@media (prefers-reduced-motion: reduce) {
+  .searchbox-caret { animation: none; }
+}