Elgato Prompter Review – Ideal for Scripted Content Creation!

The Prompter is also an interesting prospect as it aims to package everything up in to one easy use device, unlike alternatives which often require the purchase of a separate display or tablet, 3rd party software and plenty of ‘faffing’ to get set up.

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What is a Teleprompter?

Quite simply, a teleprompter is a device that allows the user to speak directly to a camera, while reading from text or visual prompts. Comprised of a display, which reflects on to an angled, one-way pane of glass, the teleprompter has proved central to the broadcast industry for decades. It is never a device which was really made the mainstream when it comes to lower-budget productions, and independent content creators – often due to the price point and complexity to set up. Historically, teleprompters have had a pretty high barrier of entry, something which it seems Elgato are lookign to combat here.

The whole point of a teleprompter is to enable the presenter to retain eye contact with the camera while reading the information displayed on the screen.

There are some interesting alternative uses for teleprompters too – whether that be for a Zoom call, live streaming, or even just a way to see yourself if you’re recording a video. Teleprompters are primarily used for scripted content, as being able to utilise an automatically scrolling script is instrumental to reciting accurate information within a time frame that works for the content being produced.

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Prompter Setup & Installation

Elgato has put a huge emphasis on ease of use with the Prompter. For this reason, installation and setup is extremely simple and only requires a few steps, regardless of the mounting that you’ve chosen. To get our Prompter set up, we used a Sigma 18-35mm lens, along with the DSLR/Mirrorless backplate. Luckily the Prompter already comes preinstalled with our backplate of choice, so this saved us some time.

Next we had to search through the box for a step-up ring that fits our lens. Elgato has catered to a number of different lens sizes from 49mm, all the way up to 82mm, so there’s quite a few options here. After finding the correct lens, all you need to do is screw this step-up ring onto the end of the lens, and slide the Prompter down on top of it. For those with a shorter lens, there is an included L-bracket to increase the stability. However, the Prompter isn’t particularly weighty, so most cameras shouldn’t have any major issues

Once you’ve mounted the Prompter on the step-up ring, all you need to do is plug in the included USB 3.0 cable into its respective port on your PC, and then fire up Elgato’s Camera Hub software.

Overall, the setup for the Prompter is incredibly easy. Even if you’re using the universal backplate, or the Facecam Pro plate, the steps are pretty much the same. You will have to do additionally mount the included L-bracket, which requires you to also secure your camera or webcam on top of it, but this won’t add many extra steps. Regardless, installation was very simple, and I have to commend Elgato on their efforts to make the setup universally hassle-free.

We set up our Prompter with the help of Dan Maxwell, one of our in-house videographers, and while his knowledge in the field was undoubtedly useful, he concluded that most tech-savvy content creators should have no issue setting up the Prompter.

Software Experience

The software of the Elgato Prompter has been my biggest concern throughout the entire review, due to a number of sticking points we’ll get into briefly. In order to get the Prompter to work, consumers need to use the Elgato Camera Hub application (unless you have an alternative application). This can be easily downloaded from the Elgato website, and can be installed quite quickly.

Upon setting up the Prompter we had some teething issues with the software. The main thing that I’ve noticed about the Prompter, is that it is a bit sensitive. Unplugging the Prompter while the software is open may require you to restart your PC entirely, which was quite frustrating. This is an edge case, and was caused by a bit of user-error, but certainly worth noting.

At one point in the setup we did have to reinstall Camera Hub at one point, but doing so seemed to do the trick. Once we got it working, using Elgato Hub is pretty seamless, and we’re sure Elgato will look to iron out any bugs here as time progresses, allowing the experience to become more stable. It is also worth noting that the Prompter is essentially treated as an external display in many senses, something that introduces additional complicaiton from a software point of view.

Within the software you’re given three options to choose from: display, text, or chat. On all of these modes, you are able to change key font settings, such as size, colour, background type and more.

Elgato Prompter – Text Function

My initial impressions of the software were that it was quite basic, but easy to use. The functionality could certainly be expanded in a few key ways, as I’ll detail more, but I can see how doing so introduces the risk of overcomplicating the experience for the end user. Presently, inputting the paragraphs of text you wish to read from is simple, and effective.

The biggest issue here for scrripted content in my view is retakes. Unlike other options you’re confined to restarting from the beginning of paragraphs, and unable to resume mid way through a body for text. For most, this won’t be an issue, and channel host James Cousins usually redoes entire sections, than smaller pick ups when shooting videos for the GeekaWhat channel. Your views on this limitation will depend entirely on personal preference.

Elgato Prompter – Chat Function

The chat function is another great feature, and one aimed specifically at Twitch streamers. In order to configure the chat function, all you have to do is find the channel, and simply add it to the list. Currently the Prompter only works with Twitch, but I imagine later down the line we’ll see integrations with YouTube and other livestreaming platforms. This may be a disappointment for streamers who primarily create content on YouTube looking to pick up the Prompter in it’s current form.

The chat function is another area where a little more fine tuning would be handy, and it left us longing for a larger display to easier dissect the complex messages, symbols and emojis often included in a livestream chat. A Prompter ‘XL’ is certainly something that could work well later down the line for this specific use-case, and again your thoughts on this will weigh heavily towards personal preference and day-to-day user experience.

The Screen

While the software of the Prompter is an area we feel could do with further improvement and fine tuning, the hardware itself is pretty superb. Elgato are nearly unrivalled when it comes to content creation, and they’ve definitely flexed their engineering team here, because the screen of the Prompter is immaculate. The nine inch display utilises a 1024×600 resolution (effectively 1080p) for a crisp, sharp and surprisingly vibrant image. The ability to use this as a normal display within Windows also cranks the versatility of the Prompter to 11, and makes it essentially unrivalled when compared to other options on the market.

As you’ll see from the images that we’ve provided, visual quality doesn’t seem to be diminished despite sporting a lower resolution. Anything you’ve decided to display on the screen, whether you’re using the text function, Twitch chat, or on a Zoom call, is visibility very clear. We’re not entirely sure why the screen on the Prompter is so strong, but I have to commend Elgato for this regardless. It is very clear to us that Elgato have prioritised the hardware here, making the Prompter an excellent option for any setup, regardless of the software that you’re using.

Elgato Prompter Script Read

In order to test out the functionality of the Prompter we got James to read a script that we put together. After setting up the script, and assigning a scroll speed, it was just a case of hitting play and let James read away. We were all pretty impressed with how easy it was to get setup within a short space of time.

You can see how well James is able to retain eye contact with the viewer, and how the small size of the Prompter screen makes James’ tracking of the on-screen text from left to right as he reads virtually indistinguishable.

Hardware Compatibility

One of the other big strengths of the Elgato Prompter is its universal mounting and compatibility. As we’ve touched on in the ‘setup’ section, getting the Prompter working is extremely simple, and requires minimal effort from the user, regardless of the hardware you’re using. Elaborating on this further, the Elgato Prompter supports a myriad of different cameras and lenses, allowing you to get the Prompter setup exactly how you want it to.

This means there’s no awkward vignetting that can often be found with other teleprompters. You shouldn’t run into any compatibility problems either. We do however recommend checking out the camera compatibility list, to make sure the camera you have works with their mounting system.

No Monitor Mounting

Other than the software (which admittedly is the biggest part of the functionality of the Prompter), I don’t think there are many weaknesses that this product has. However, this is one small pet peeve that is worth briefly addressing, and this is the lack of any monitor mounting functionality. While the design premise of the Prompter is to be mounted on a tripod, I feel there is a market of consumers being cut out here, by not providing a way to mount the Prompter on top of a monitor.

Consumers with smaller setups might not have the space for a tripod, so a clamp that allows you to place the Prompter on top of a monitor would be very useful in these instances. It also doesn’t seem like a far cry for Elgato to include this within the packaging, or to charge a small amount extra, for consumers to pick up the monitor mount as an add-on. Either way, if you don’t have a tripod, the Prompter might not be for you.

The closest alternative would be to pick up an Elgato Multi Mount, a device which would certainly support the weight of the Prompter with no issues. The use of a universal tripod thread also means a universal magic arm would work too, keeping your options very open!

Conclusion