Want to create professional-looking videos for your business while cutting production time? Then a teleprompter would be great for you! You can check out this blog post to learn more about iPad teleprompters and how I use them in my business.
For today, I’m going to review two teleprompters I’ve used (Interact Media and Caddie Buddy) and will be pointing out their pros and cons to help you decide which one is right for you.
iPad Teleprompters: How do they work?
iPad Teleprompters help you read a script while talking directly to the camera. Doing this not only enhances your connection with your audience, but also helps you minimize errors and re-shooting, cutting down production time.
The hardware
You don’t need an iPad for you to use these teleprompters. You can use an Android tablet or phone and it will give you the same results.
But here’s the important piece – the beam splitter glass. This glass is magic! I actually tried to DIY this, but it didn’t work. So I suggest you just buy the entire system from Caddie Buddy (which I’m going to talk about later).
The software
There are a lot of teleprompter apps available, but the one I recommend is Teleprompt+ 3. (UPDATE: my new favorite is PromptSmart Pro.) All you need to do is type in your script or drag it from Google Docs or Dropbox, set the text to ‘Mirrored’ and then hit ‘Start Prompting.’
When it’s set to ‘Mirrored,’ the text will be backwards, which will enable you to see it correctly on the teleprompter.
Caddie Buddy vs Interact Media
I’ve gone into detail about the pros and cons of each system in the video above, so I will only provide a quick summary below.
- Interact Media (IM) costs $150 while Caddie Buddy (CB) costs $160
- CB’s black cloth cover attaches to the top of the glass frame and has a long piece of Velcro sewn into it, while IM’s cover only has two small Velcro pieces on one side and both of them easily come off. CB also has some structure built into their cloth, keeping it from sagging in front of the lens.
- CB has an adjustable tray where you can put your iPad/tablet/Android phone; IM’s tray isn’t adjustable. IM’s tray works, it’s just that I think CB’s tray is a little bit better.
- CB’s plastic frame for the beam splitter is foldable and can be packed easily, whereas IM’s wooden frame is screwed in and pretty bulky if you want to carry it around for transport.
- CB has an L-shaped, adjustable mount for your camera which is relatively small, but it allows for more movement and doesn’t block the battery door on my Canon DSLR. On the other hand, IM has a larger, more rigid mount, which blocks my battery door. And the IM has screw heads that stick up, making it difficult to mount my camera.
Which teleprompter do you think I prefer?
You guessed it – the Caddie Buddy! If you want one for yourself, head over to Amazon..
Then let me know about your experience in the comments below!