Questions
Is it really free?
Yes. ShoutAbout is free to download and use. No ads, no account, no trial, no in-app purchases.
What does it run on?
- Windows: Windows 10 (version 1809 or later) or Windows 11, 64-bit. An NVIDIA graphics card makes it faster, but any PC works.
- Mac: a Mac with Apple silicon (M1 or newer) and macOS 14 Sonoma or later.
- iPhone: iOS 26 or later (iPhone 11 and newer). It starts as a TestFlight beta; the App Store comes later.
Does my voice go to the cloud?
No. Speech is turned into text on your computer or on your iPhone. When your iPhone sends a recording to your computer, it goes straight across your home Wi-Fi. We never receive your audio or your words. The privacy policy has the details.
Do I need the iPhone app?
No. Your computer works on its own with a key, and the iPhone app works on its own too. Use both, and your iPhone becomes a microphone for your computer.
Does it work away from home?
Your iPhone does: away from home it writes the text itself, puts it on your clipboard, and tells you so. Your computer only listens on your own network, so sending to it needs the same Wi-Fi.
Could it send something by mistake?
No. ShoutAbout only pastes text where you're typing. It never presses Enter, and it never treats what you say as a command.
Which languages does it understand?
English, for now.
Why does Windows warn me when I install it?
Windows doesn't know ShoutAbout's installer yet, so it says “Windows protected your PC”. Click More info, check the app is ShoutAbout-Setup.exe, then click Run anyway. A Microsoft Store version, which installs without the warning, is planned. On PCs with Smart App Control turned on there's no Run anyway button: please wait for the Store version.
What's TestFlight?
Apple's app for trying apps before they're in the App Store. Install TestFlight from the App Store, then open ShoutAbout's beta link on your iPhone (it's on the download page). Each beta build works for 90 days; new ones arrive through TestFlight.
How do I change the key?
Click the yellow mouth (next to the clock on Windows, in the menu bar on a Mac) and open Settings. Under Key you can pick another key, and choose Press to start and stop or Hold to talk.
Can it tidy punctuation and filler words?
On a Windows PC, yes, if you already have Ollama and your PC can afford it: a small AI model on your PC fixes punctuation and filler words. Settings › Clean up wording with AI. It's off on Macs for now.
How do I remove it?
- Windows: Settings › Apps › Installed apps › ShoutAbout › Uninstall. Tick the box if you also want your settings and history gone.
- Mac: quit ShoutAbout from the menu bar, then drag it from Applications to the Trash.
- iPhone: delete the app.
Is ShoutAbout open source?
No. It's free, but the code isn't public. It's built with open-source parts, listed on the licenses page.
Quick fixes
My iPhone doesn't find my computer
- Both on the same Wi-Fi, and ShoutAbout running on the computer (the yellow mouth by the clock, or in the Mac's menu bar).
- Windows: your Wi-Fi must be a Private network. Settings › Network & internet › Wi-Fi › your network › Network profile type › Private network.
- iPhone: Settings › Privacy & Security › Local Network › ShoutAbout on. On a Mac with macOS 15 or later, the same switch is in System Settings.
- Guest and office Wi-Fi often stop devices from seeing each other. Still nothing? Use Scan a code instead on the computer and in the app.
Nothing appears when I talk
- Is ShoutAbout paused? Click its mouth and choose Resume.
- Just installed? It says “Getting ready” while the speech model downloads.
- Mac: System Settings › Privacy & Security › Accessibility › ShoutAbout on. Without it ShoutAbout can't paste, and the text stays on your clipboard.
- Windows: apps running as administrator don't accept pasting from ShoutAbout. The text is on your clipboard instead: press Ctrl+V.
“Windows protected your PC”
Click More info, then Run anyway. Windows asks this until the Microsoft Store version is ready.
It keeps spelling a name wrong
Click the yellow mouth and choose Teach words. Add the name the way it should be written, and ShoutAbout prefers that spelling from then on.
Still stuck?
Email us. Tell us what you see, and please don't send recordings or anything private.
Testing the iPhone beta? Send feedback straight from TestFlight: take a screenshot in ShoutAbout and tap Share Beta Feedback, or open TestFlight and tap Send Beta Feedback.
ShoutAbout is made by one person, so there's no help desk or support email yet. These pages are kept up to date with the answers people need most.