New: Screenshot Previews for Your Monitors

We just shipped screenshot previews for all monitors. Now you can see exactly what PageDrifter sees before you start monitoring.

What's New

When you add or edit a monitor, PageDrifter now fetches a live screenshot of the page. You'll see:

• A visual preview of how the page renders
• The exact content that will be monitored
• Any issues with JavaScript rendering or load times
• Whether authentication or geo-blocking affects the view

No more guessing whether your monitor is set up correctly.

Why This Matters

Before screenshot previews, setting up a monitor was a bit of a leap of faith. You'd enter a URL, configure settings, and hope everything worked. If something was wrong—wrong page, blocked content, rendering issues—you'd only find out later when alerts didn't make sense.

Now you get immediate visual feedback. See a blank page? The site might need JavaScript rendering. See a login screen? The page requires authentication. See exactly what you expected? You're good to go.

How to Use It

When Creating a New Monitor

1. Go to your dashboard and click "Add Monitor"
2. Enter the URL you want to monitor
3. Click "Preview" or wait for auto-preview
4. Review the screenshot that appears
5. Adjust settings if needed (enable JavaScript rendering, change wait time)
6. Save your monitor once the preview looks correct

When Editing Existing Monitors

1. Open any existing monitor
2. Click "Preview" to fetch a fresh screenshot
3. Compare with what you expect to see
4. Make adjustments if the page has changed

Troubleshooting with Previews

The preview helps diagnose common issues:

What You See	Likely Issue	Solution
Blank page	JavaScript not rendering	Enable JavaScript rendering
Partial content	Page needs more load time	Increase wait time
Login screen	Authentication required	Check if public URL exists
Different content	Geo-blocking or A/B test	Note regional differences
Error message	Site blocking bots	Try different user agent

Preview Settings

The preview respects all your monitor settings:

• JavaScript rendering - Preview shows rendered content when enabled
• Wait time - Preview waits the configured time before capturing
• Viewport size - Preview matches your selected screen size

This means the preview is exactly what your monitor will see during actual checks.

Technical Details

• Previews are generated on-demand when you request them
• Screenshots are captured at 1280x720 resolution by default
• Preview generation typically takes 3-10 seconds depending on page complexity
• Previews don't count against your monthly check quota

What's Next

Screenshot previews are just the beginning. Coming soon:

• Side-by-side comparisons - See current vs. previous screenshots
• Visual diff highlighting - Automatic marking of changed areas
• Scheduled screenshots - Archive visual history over time

Try It Now

Screenshot previews are available for all PageDrifter users on all plans, including free accounts.

Head to your dashboard and try adding a new monitor—or preview an existing one to see your pages in a new way.

Questions or feedback? We'd love to hear how screenshot previews are helping your workflow. Reach out anytime at support@pagedrifter.com.