Quick take: The Vlogmate Mini is the simplest phone selfie screen I've tested. It clips to the back of your phone so you can film yourself with the better rear camera. It's smaller, thinner and lighter than other phone monitors, it's the brightest at 700 nits, it turns on and rotates automatically, includes a detachable Bluetooth shutter remote, and, unlike wireless screens, it plays audio back through your phone. The catch: it uses your phone's only USB-C port, so wired mics are out unless you add a hub.
A Different Kind of Selfie Screen
I've reviewed two rear-camera selfie screens for phones and turned down several others because they're all basically the same. This one is different, and I think it's the one that will appeal to most people. The company sent it for review, but I don't do paid opinions. They're seeing this at the same time you are.
Size and the Bluetooth Remote
It's significantly smaller, thinner and lighter than every other phone monitor on the market, including the newest wireless model I've been using. The odd shape below the screen is a Bluetooth remote you can pop off to trigger recording or take photos with your phone's rear camera.
Brightness and Display
It also has the brightest screen of any model I've seen, rated at 700 nits. For reference, many computer monitors top out around 400 nits. Outdoors, I could easily check framing and even general exposure with my ND filter on, which is part of the struggle with these screens. The wireless ones are noticeably dimmer, probably because of thermal limits and the Wi-Fi hardware they have to house.
The corners are clipped slightly by design, but most people aren't framing themselves in the very corners. In the Blackmagic Camera app, I could see myself clearly, and that's all I need.
Connection and Setup
It comes connected to a sleek, form-fitted USB-C cable. If you have a Lightning iPhone, don't throw away the packaging: under the plastic cover you'll find a Lightning cable and an extra magnetic mount for phones without MagSafe. Any cable works, you just lose the flush look.
What I like most is that it just works. Snap it on, plug it in and it turns on. It rotates correctly when you turn the phone in either direction, unlike other screens where you have to dig into menus to flip and mirror the image, which drives me nuts in the Blackmagic app.
It Plays Your Audio Back
This matters a lot for TikTok creators. Wireless phone screens don't have speakers, but your phone treats them like a TV and sends the audio there, so you can't hear playback unless you disconnect. The Vlogmate Mini plays audio through your phone when you review clips. The only other screen I know of that does this is one wireless model, and only when used over USB-C, and it's slower to start and chunkier in your pocket.
The Drawback: Your Only USB-C Port
Using a wired connection means it takes your phone's only USB-C port. I tried several splitters, and none worked. The company says you can use a hub, but that defeats the purpose of such a simple, small product.
If you don't use wired or USB-C wireless mic receivers, it's a non-issue. If you do, you can still record audio on your mic and sync it in post. It's easy on a laptop or iPad. On a phone, LumaFusion is the only editing app I remember that lets you sync external audio.
Final Thoughts
It isn't the most feature-packed option, but it's small, easy and just works, which is why I think it'll be the favorite for most people. I don't think it gets much better until one of these includes a speaker, or phone makers finally build a small selfie screen into the back of the phone.
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