A teleprompter for presentations and speeches
Whether it's a keynote, a best-man speech or a school assembly, a tablet or laptop in front of you can show your words in large, steady text, scrolled by you or by someone else.
Step by step: use a clicker or foot pedal
- Pair it like a keyboard. Most clickers and foot pedals pair in your device’s Bluetooth settings and send key presses, such as Page Down or the arrow keys.
- Open Clicker setup and press a button. In the sliders menu, open Clicker setup and press each button. Reframely shows what it sent; assign it to play, speed or jumping by a few lines.
- Read hands-free. A foot pedal keeps both hands free for a demo or a product. Tap once to pause, again to carry on. Stream Deck keys and MIDI pads work the same way.
Two ways to run it
- You scroll: hold a presentation clicker. Most send Page Up and Page Down, which Reframely uses for back and forward; map a third button to play and pause in Clicker setup.
- A helper scrolls: a friend or operator pairs their phone as the remote and follows along, adjusting speed as you speak. Several remotes can join one code.
Set it up on a lectern or stand
- Open Reframely on the tablet or laptop that faces you and tap Open prompter.
- Make the text big: try 60 to 80 pixels for a tablet a couple of feet away. Choose Loose line spacing.
- Turn the countdown off in the Display menu so you can start on your first word.
- Rehearse once at full length and use Fit to to match your time slot.
Before the event
- Test at the venue. The phone remote needs internet to pair; if the venue's Wi-Fi blocks direct connections, it falls back to the encrypted relay route with a short delay.
- Load the page before you go on. Once open, scrolling and a keyboard or clicker work even if the internet drops; only the phone remote needs a connection.
- Plug in and turn off battery saver, and keep a printed copy as a backup.
Where to put the screen
- At a lectern: a tablet flat on the lectern or on a low stand. Keep text large and the reading line low, so you look up at the room between lines.
- On stage without a lectern: a confidence monitor on the floor at the front, or a laptop on a stand at the back of the room, so reading looks like looking at the audience.
- For a recorded talk: the screen goes under the camera, ideally in a glass rig.
Write it to be heard
Speeches are listened to, not read. Use short sentences, repeat your key point at the end, and put a blank line where you want a pause. Mark the spots for slides with a note like [[Next slide]]: double brackets show on the prompter but are never part of what you read.
Timing and the room
Rooms are slower than rehearsals: laughter, applause and slides all take time. Aim a little under your slot. A 10-minute slot is about 1,200 to 1,400 words; the 10-minute speech guide has a minute-by-minute plan. With a clicker or foot pedal you move on when you're ready, rather than chasing a fixed speed.
Questions
Can I use a teleprompter for a wedding speech?
Yes. Put your speech on a tablet or phone in large text, and have a friend scroll it from their phone, or use a small clicker yourself.
Can someone else control my teleprompter?
Yes. In Reframely, anyone can pair their phone as the remote with the 7-letter code and control the speed and position.
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