Screen recording app for Mac

By Dave Nason, 19 March, 2013

Member of the AppleVis Editorial Team

Forum
macOS and Mac Apps
Hi All, I'm looking for a Mac app for screen recording. The built in one in QuickTime isn't working too well for me so I want to find a good accessible third party solution, hopefully without spending too much. There are loads of them in the Mac App Store, many with the same name, so it's hard to know which to try and I don't want to waste money on an inaccessible or difficult to use app. I tried one called Screen Cap but i I'm not quite sure how to use it, and the support link in the App Store takes you to a web page that no longer exists. Any help appreciated.

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Comments

By Victor Tsaran on Monday, March 25, 2013 - 11:20

My absolute favorite is Snapz Pro. Search for it, it's easy to find. you can download and try the demo before you buy. I personally love it!

By Dave Nason on Monday, March 25, 2013 - 11:20

Member of the AppleVis Editorial Team

In reply to by Victor Tsaran

Hi Victor. Thanks for the recommendation. Quick question; since downloading it to trial, VoiceOver is no longer speaking on my MacBook's login screen. This should be completely unrelated but it's only happening since I installed Snapz Pro. Have you had this issue by any chance? It's not the end of the world as I know how to get through my login screen without VO, but it's a bit irritating. Come to think of it, I think I had a similar issue when I was trialling Parallels, strange.

By Dave Nason on Monday, March 25, 2013 - 11:20

Member of the AppleVis Editorial Team
Hi again. I just wondered if Snapz Pro is mainly designed for screen shot images? What I'm looking for is to record my screen and the audio. There is a Movies tab in this program, but it just seems to be recording a small square in the middle of the screen, rather than the whole screen? Am I doing something wrong? Missing a setting or something? The fact that it lets you record both internal audio and the mic is great, so if I can get the video bit right I'd be happy.

By Esther on Monday, March 25, 2013 - 11:20

I haven't tried the latest release of Screenflow which came out last October, but earlier versions of this application have been used by VoiceOver users to record training videos. It's more expensive than Snapz Pro X though, at $99. The best way to buy either of these apps is when they're part of a bundle sale -- both were offered as part of earlier MacUpdate mupromo bundles, where you get 10 or so apps for $49.99. That's how I got an earlier version of Screenflow, and Snapz Pro was part of their winter bundle back in December. (By the way, there's a MacUpdate Spring bundle ending in 6 hours that includes Prizmo 2, but that's another story.)

Take a look at this review of Screenflow 4, that can be read in Safari Reader, and which contains a link to the trial version:

http://mac.appstorm.net/reviews/video/screenflow-4-professional-screencasting-on-your-mac/

The well rated alternatives to Screenflow used to include iShowU, but I don't know about it's accessibility, and it hasn't been updated in a long time.  And yes, Screenflow is more optimized for video and audio recording of movies as opposed to screen captures than Snapz Pro, though both software applications can do either.  I'd recommend you check out reviews at the MacUpdate site for alternatives.

By Dave Nason on Monday, March 25, 2013 - 11:20

Member of the AppleVis Editorial Team

In reply to by Esther

Hi Esther, thanks so much for this. I shall check that out for sure.

By Victor Tsaran on Monday, March 25, 2013 - 11:20

Hi Dave, You should be in the movie tab, as you have already guessed. To toggle between different screen sizes, you have to play with camera settings, found on the same tab. Hope you will get it to work.
Thanks Victor. Yeah I have played around with settings with a certain amount of success. There are 3 camera types to choose from. "Normal" leaves the width and height fields blank it seems, and by default records a small square. "Aspect Ratio" and "Fixed" both enter width of 640 and height of 480 by default. These can be edited, but I don't know what to put in for full screen. Anyway I'll keep playing around with it.