> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.readout.tv/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Phones as microphones

> A phone near each person, so every word is heard, and labelled with their name.

A phone can be the microphone for the captions. Put it close to the person talking, across the room
or at the far end of a table, and their words show on the captioning device and on the TV.

**1. Open TVs and phones**

In the app, tap **TVs and phones** at the top.

**2. Scan the QR code with the other phone**

Scan it with the phone's camera. Or open **readout.tv/mic** on that phone and type the code it
shows into the app.

**3. Start the microphone**

On the phone, enter a name, choose who will speak into it, and tap **Start microphone**.

The phone doesn't need an account: it joins through the device that's signed in.

## Who speaks into it

> [card] Just me
>
> Every word from the phone is labelled with its owner's name. With a phone for each person, the
> labels are close to perfect.

> [card] Several people
>
> A phone shared by a group, such as one in the middle of a table. Speakers are told apart by
> their voices.

## Good to know

* Up to 8 phones can join one conversation, and several can be live at once.
* Phones near each other all hear whoever is talking, but each word is captioned once, from the
  phone that heard it loudest.
* While a phone is live, the captioning device's own microphone stands by, so the same words aren't
  captioned twice. Leave captions on there: if the phones stop, it takes over.
* Each phone can ring the TV's bell too, with **Alert the TV**.
* Phones need the internet. If it drops, they stop, and the captioning device carries on with its
  own microphone.


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