Appearance
Browser Automation
Pencel includes two browser-related integrations that let your agents fetch web content, navigate pages, fill out forms, and automate browser interactions.
Web Fetch
| Trust Level | Verified |
| Transport | Builtin |
| Package | fetch-mcp (via npx) |
| Activation | Auto-connect recommended |
What It Does
Web Fetch retrieves web pages and converts them to clean, readable text. It is the simplest way to give your agents access to information on the web — no browser needed.
- Fetch any public URL and get the page content as text or markdown.
- Follow redirects automatically.
- Handle common content types (HTML, JSON, plain text).
- Extract specific content from pages.
Setup
- Open Settings > Connections.
- Click Add Connection and select Web Fetch from the catalog.
- Click Connect. No credentials needed.
TIP
Web Fetch is lightweight and fast. Use it when you just need to read a web page. Use Playwright when you need to interact with a page (click buttons, fill forms, take screenshots).
Permissions
Web Fetch requires network access to reach external URLs. It runs locally on your machine and makes HTTP requests directly. No data passes through Pencel's servers.
Example: Competitor Pricing Monitor
Fetch the pricing page at https://competitor.com/pricing. Extract the plan names, prices, and feature lists. Compare with our pricing in /data/our-pricing.md. Highlight any changes since the last check. Save the comparison to /reports/pricing-comparison-[date].md.
Example: Daily News Digest
Fetch the top stories from https://news.ycombinator.com. Summarize the top 10 stories in one sentence each. Post the digest to the #industry-news Slack channel.
Playwright
| Trust Level | Verified (Microsoft) |
| Transport | Builtin |
| Package | @playwright/mcp |
| Activation | Manual recommended |
What It Does
Playwright is a full browser automation tool maintained by Microsoft. It gives your agents control of a real browser — they can navigate pages, click buttons, fill out forms, take screenshots, and extract data from dynamic web applications.
- Navigate to any URL in a real browser.
- Click, type, and interact with page elements.
- Take screenshots of full pages or specific elements.
- Extract data from dynamic, JavaScript-rendered pages.
- Handle authentication — log into web apps and navigate authenticated pages.
- Wait for content — handles loading states and dynamic rendering.
Setup
- Open Settings > Connections.
- Click Add Connection and select Playwright from the catalog.
- Click Connect.
Playwright downloads a browser binary on first use. This takes a moment but only happens once.
WARNING
Playwright launches a real browser process on your machine. It has access to the network and can navigate to any URL. It can also execute JavaScript on pages it visits. Only use it with trusted workflow instructions.
Permissions
Playwright requires:
- Network access to load web pages.
- Process execution to run the browser binary.
- Disk space for the browser binary (approximately 200 MB).
Example: Automated Form Submission
Navigate to https://internal-tool.company.com/reports. Log in with the credentials stored in the workspace. Select "Monthly Revenue" from the report dropdown, set the date range to last month, and click "Generate." Wait for the report to load, then take a screenshot and save it to /reports/revenue-screenshot-[date].png.
Example: Web App Testing
Navigate to https://staging.ourapp.com. Click the "Sign Up" button. Fill in the form with test data: name "Test User," email "test@example.com." Click "Submit." Verify that the confirmation page appears with the message "Welcome, Test User." Take a screenshot of the result.
Which One Should You Use?
| Need | Use This |
|---|---|
| Read a public web page | Web Fetch — fast, lightweight, no browser needed |
| Scrape a page that requires JavaScript to render | Playwright — handles dynamic pages |
| Fill out forms or click buttons | Playwright — full cross-browser interaction support |
| Take screenshots of web pages | Playwright — supports screenshots |
| Maximum browser compatibility | Playwright — supports Chrome, Firefox, and Safari |
TIP
Start with Web Fetch for simple page reading. Move to Playwright when you need interaction or JavaScript rendering.