What is a teleprompter?
A teleprompter is a display that shows your script as scrolling text, placed so you can read it while looking straight at the camera or your audience — no memorising, no glancing down at notes.
Hardware vs software
Classic hardware teleprompters reflect a script off angled glass in front of the lens, so the reader looks at the camera and the words at once. Software teleprompters drop the glass and scroll the script on a phone, tablet or laptop near the camera — cheaper, portable, and good enough for most creators and presenters.
The hard part: keeping pace
Every teleprompter has to decide how fast the text moves. Most scroll at a fixed speed you set in advance, so if you pause or ad-lib the text drifts and you end up chasing it. A voice-following teleprompter listens and moves the script to match your actual speech instead.
Frequently asked questions
- Do I need special hardware for a teleprompter?
- No. A software teleprompter like letter maps runs in your browser on a phone, tablet or laptop. Beam-splitter rigs are optional and mainly matter when the camera must sit exactly behind the text.
- What is a voice-following teleprompter?
- One that listens to your speech and scrolls the script to match your pace, instead of moving at a fixed preset speed.
- Is letter maps free?
- Yes — free, no account, and your script stays in your browser.
Related: Features, Why voice-following, How to use a teleprompter