An ikan teleprompter app alternative
ikan makes everything from home-studio prompters to large studio rigs. Its Homestream Teleprompter app is basic; Reframely adds file import, saved drafts and a phone remote while running in the browser.
Step by step: set up a glass teleprompter rig
- Lay the screen under the glass. Put your phone or tablet face up in the tray, under the angled glass. The camera sits behind the glass and films straight through it.
- Pick your rig in Reframely. Open the sliders and choose Your rig. Tablet or Phone in a glass rig mirrors the text, so it reads the right way round in the glass.
- Turn the brightness all the way up. Beam-splitter glass passes only part of the light, so the reflection is dimmer than the screen. Full brightness and a darker room keep the words crisp.
- Check it through the camera. Look at the camera’s screen, not the tablet. If the hood’s edge shows in a wide shot, zoom in a little or widen the side margins. Then pair a clicker or your phone and press play.
What Homestream app users report
ikan's Homestream Teleprompter app, which pairs with its HS-PROMPTER remote, averages 3.0 out of 5 from a few ratings (App Store). Reviewers mention:
- The remote not connecting even though Bluetooth opens in the app.
- No way to import scripts, so they copy and paste.
- No autosave, with a warning to save before using the back arrow.
- No tutorial or help.
How Reframely covers those gaps
| Gap | In Reframely |
|---|---|
| No import | Import .docx, .txt, .md and .rtf |
| No autosave | Edits are kept as a draft and restored if the page closes |
| Remote won't connect | Your second phone is the remote; or map the ikan remote in Clicker setup |
| No help | Rig presets with setup tips, plus these guides |
Large ikan studio prompters
Big ikan rigs such as the PT-Elite Pro are aimed at studios (Speakflow). Use Reframely on the tablet or display in the rig with the tablet preset, raise the text size, and let a second person run the script from their phone.
Home-studio ikan prompters
ikan's smaller prompters take a tablet or phone under the glass. Set them up like any glass rig: tablet preset, brightness at maximum, hood closed around the lens. If the image looks doubled, the glass may be in the wrong way round: the coated side should face you.
Studio prompters with their own monitor
Larger ikan rigs have a monitor in place of a tablet. Connect a laptop to the monitor's input, open the output window from Display → Second screen / OBS, drag it onto the prompter monitor and press F. Many studio monitors have a hardware reverse switch; use either that or Reframely's Mirror, not both. See studio prompter monitor software.
Operator or self-paced?
- Self-paced: the talent holds a clicker or uses a foot pedal, or turns on voice follow.
- Operator: someone off camera runs the script from a phone or laptop remote, slowing down and speeding up with the talent. For larger crews with several screens, our SyncedCue Studio adds a confidence monitor, cues and a take log.
Questions
Will the ikan Elite Remote work?
If it connects to your tablet as a keyboard-type device, its buttons appear in Reframely's Clicker setup and can be assigned. Test it there.
Where are my scripts saved?
In the browser on that device. Several scripts can be kept and switched from the Scripts menu.
Sources
Last updated .