Mastering Selenium WebDriver 3.0 - Second Edition

Implicitly wait timeout

Implicit waits were not originally part of the WebDriver API; they are actually a hangover from the old Selenium 1 API. They were not going to be put into the WebDriver API, because they encourage people to write tests without thinking, something like this:

Why is my test failing when the element should be there? Oh, let's just slap in an arbitrary wait; if it goes green, it must be fine.

The only reason it made it into the WebDriver API was the massive outcry from the community who had got used to the Selenium 1 API and wanted it back.

This is probably the timeout that causes the most confusion, even though, on the face of it, it seems very simple. What it does is add a grace period when trying to find an element. ...