I often misclick an app icon to it's left and end up searching that letter on the waterfall search bar. I think it would be more user friendly if the search only toggled on the right and miss clicks left just hit the app that is at that row level

What you're hitting is a real feature rather than a glitch: the left screen edge carries an invisible copy of the alphabet, so left-handed users can reach every app without stretching across the screen. That's also why a tap just left of an app name lands on the alphabet and jumps to that letter.

There's a stated position on switching it off: the team considers a toggle for it not impactful enough, and sees accidental edge touches as something the phone's palm rejection should catch. Both answers sit in Left Hand Mode, in the section about disabling the invisible left alphabet. That's the current stance, not a verdict on your post; the team decides here.

If your case differs from what the article covers, adding it to the post helps, and votes are what move a request up our list.