Comparison
Teleprompter app vs Elgato Prompter
Elgato Prompter is hardware with a built-in screen. A teleprompter app turns the phone or iPad you own into the screen. Here's when each makes sense.
The Elgato Prompter is a beam splitter teleprompter with its own built-in display that connects to your computer, popular with streamers because it integrates with Elgato's Camera Hub and Stream Deck. An app like Teleprompter Premium+ does the software side on devices you already own, and can sit in any beam splitter rig.
| Teleprompter app | Elgato Prompter | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Software on iPhone, iPad, Mac | Hardware rig with a built-in screen |
| Eye contact | Good with the phone near the lens; perfect in a rig | Perfect: text is in front of the lens |
| Setup | Open the app | Mount on camera, connect to a computer |
| Portability | In your pocket | Desk or studio |
| Voice scrolling | Yes | Depends on the software you drive it with |
When you need hardware
If you film seated at a desk with a proper camera and want text dead-centre in front of the lens, a beam splitter is the gold standard. You don't have to buy one with a built-in screen, though: most rigs hold an iPhone or iPad running an app with mirror mode.
See our guide to the best teleprompter hardware for rigs at every budget.
Read your script hands-free on iPhone, iPad and Mac. The teleprompter follows your voice.