Pro Prompter HDi for iPad

So, we're sitting around the office, trying to justify purchasing Apple's latest gadget (iPad).

And almost like a sign from Steve Jobs himself, a B&H newsletter arrives hailing a new piece of hardware that almost makes the iPad purchase a done deal.

We're talking about Pro Prompter's HDi for the iPad.

In B&H's NAB Roundup newsletter, Ron Seifried introduces the HDi, a system that converts the iPad into a teleprompter:

The Pro Prompter HDi designed a secure support system made of aircraft aluminum that attaches the iPad to the base and the whole configuration attaches to the camera.

According to the Pro Propter peoples, here's what they have to say about their new toy:

Our award winning ProPrompter HD now holds the revolutionary iPad, safe and secure, goes anywhere your camera and iPad go and comes in a custom military grade case. We created mobile teleprompting in 2002 and were the first to create a professional teleprompting App for the iPhone/iPod touch along with hardware released at NAB 2009. Now our App has had 4 free updates, became an App store staff favorite and then we introduced the first remote control feature in a teleprompting app. The NEW ProPrompter HDi is the ultimate mobile teleprompter.

When paired with the iPhone or iTouch app, which acts as the control mechanism for the prompting software, the iPad morphs into a handy field teleprompting machine.
The system (via B&H) costs $894. Factor in the cost of the iPad ($499, $599, $699 for the Wi-Fi models) and you're looking at a teleprompter system that could run you (tops) $1,600.

That's a far cry from the Autocue series that run anywhere from $4,000-$6,000. And that doesn't include software costs, cabling, or control mechanisms.

In today's glorious economy, that's a price most small studios can't afford.

And it's just one more reason to get the iPad.