Glide Gear TMP 50 10" Smartphone Mini Tripod Teleprompter

I use a Logitech C920 webcam, and I needed something that would fit in the camera, work with my iPhone, and be portable if I needed it. br>br>This was exactly what I needed! It's not as compact as the Parrot Teleprompter (in fact, given that it's a "smartphone" teleprompter, I was surprised by how large it is), but it folds down easily and comes with a nice carry case. You could fit an iPad Mini in it, but not a full-size iPad (at least, not in my opinion). I've never given it a shot. ) Nonetheless utilizing my webcam The iPhone's screen size is ideal because it allows me to look straight into the camera. Because I'm not saying um and glancing at my notes all the time, my editing time has been cut in half! It's a little difficult to figure out what's going on under the hood- It's stiff out of the bag, and the first few times I had to really work it into place, but it's loosening up. br>br>I was using it with a tripod on my desk. However, it's simply too heavy. Everything is much more stable now that I'm using an Amazon Basics tripod. (2019 Update: For added stability, I've switched to a Dolica Proline tripod. )br>br>If you want to use this with the C920, I recommend getting an L-shaped tripod bracket so you can mount the camera sideways and adjust the height with the arm; otherwise, the camera will be too close to the bottom of the glass and you'll get the bracket that holds the phone/tablet in your shot. br>br>2019 Update: Since my initial review, my "rig" has grown a little bit. I'm now using it inside a newer 18" ring light, with a Blue Snowball Ice microphone mounted on the front of the tablet arm. For me, this is a great solution. br>br>2021 Update: I'm still using this setup with an iPhone11, and for recording I've upgraded to a Canon M6 Mark II. I'm still using the Dolica Proline tripod, but I've added a shock mount to the front of it for my Blue snowball ice. I'm using JoeAllenPro's teleprompter app, and I'm using a Logi R500 remote to control the scroll.

Christina Vincent

| Jun 24, 2021

To begin with, the positive:
- It works.
- It will be well protected if you're transporting it between locations in this carrying case.
- Unfolding, setup, and use are all relatively simple.
- It's made of high-quality metal, so it won't break easily or any time soon.
- There are two screw holes on the bottom of the tripod to accommodate two different tripod sizes. br>br>And now for the bad news:
- The entire unit is slightly off square in terms of how it was assembled and screwed together where it's immovable, and the screws are torqued so tightly that even my husband couldn't unscrew it to see if we could adjust it. The unit is still functional; all we had to do was reposition it on the tripod so that I could see the prompter text even though the entire unit was twisted - It's possible that we got one that somehow got past Quality Control (see the closeup photo with the red arrows for an example of this - Because the glass is slightly angled, we had to mount the camera slightly twisted, then twist the entire unit so that the *glass* faces straight on so I could read it - workable, but come on, it shouldn't have left the factory in this condition);

- The hood that covers the back and camera (in order to block out light so you can read the text on the mirror glass) is too small. It adheres to the unit nicely, but it should be much longer - The hood doesn't come all the way down to block out the light, so the text can't be read, even though our camera is mounted up close rather than further back on the sled (if you wanted a wider field of view). We just built a hood for ourselves.

- Regardless of the suggested'modification' of removing the back bracket, there is no way this unit will hold an iPad Pro 11". It barely fits my iPad 2 (which is smaller than the Pro) without the back bracket, and the iPad is less stable without it - It's fine if you're not constantly touching it to make adjustments or pressing buttons on the iPad, for example. ALSO, the screw(s) that hold the smartphone/tablet brackets in place are not removable, so when you remove the bracket, the screw remains, scratching the back of your iPad/tablet - That might not seem like a big deal to you, but I've always tried to keep my devices in mint condition for resale, so I had to add a small bumper to protect the back from scratches. A flaw in the design. Honestly, the issues are all minor, and we were able to work around them, so in my opinion, this is a reasonably good unit *for the price* (under $100), and if you order one, you might get one without the skewed assembly. br>br>For those new to shooting video, you'll still need a 'prompting' app for your table or smartphone; the Parrot Teleprompter App is free and works well, and you can purchase a $20 remote for it on Parrot's website (to start/stop scrolling, backup, and so on). If you're shooting the video with a (second) smartphone or tablet (rather than a traditional video camera), If you have a capable DSLR camera, there are a plethora of bluetooth shutter remotes available for purchase that will allow you to start and stop recording for a very low price.

Christina Robles

| May 22, 2021