MANUAL

RecOn Manual

macOS 15 or later

RecOn is free on the App Store. The App Store version writes M4A instead of MP3 and asks you to choose a save folder the first time you record. The MP3 and Downloads-folder details below apply to RecOn Pro (sold here).

RecOn lives in the menu bar. Click ⏺ to open the panel, pick what to record at the top, start recording. Stopping is from the same ⏺. The details are in the Video, Audio and Other tabs below.

1. Getting started (permissions)

When the app opens, a ⏺ appears in the menu bar. There is no Dock icon.
"Close" at the bottom left of the panel just closes the panel. The app keeps running.
To quit, right-click (or Control-click) the ⏺ in the menu bar and choose "Quit RecOn". You can't quit while recording, so stop first.
The first time you record, macOS asks for Screen Recording and Microphone, and Camera if you use the overlay. If you declined, turn RecOn on under System Settings → Privacy & Security.

2. What to record

Pick it with the four big buttons at the top of the panel. The one you picked is shown inverted. Then press the red "Start recording" right below them (Return works too). Countdown, microphone and the rest are set in the Video, Audio and Other tabs under "Settings"; they are remembered for next time.

Full screen: Records the whole of the chosen display. Countdown: none / 3 s / 5 s.
Region: Press "Select a region and record", the screen dims, and you drag out the area. Drag inside the frame to move it, or drag a corner to resize it. Your last region is shown to start with. When it's right, click inside, press Enter, or hit the ⏺ REC in the middle; drag outside the frame to choose a new one; Esc to cancel. A 3 or 5 second countdown always runs (so you never record the moment you click).
Window: Records just one window. Press "Select a window and record": the window under the mouse gets a red frame. Click the one you want. Esc cancels.
The red frame stays while recording, but it's drawn outside the window, so it doesn't show up in the video. It follows the window if you move it while recording, and other apps' windows on top of it stay out of the video. The camera overlay and click effects still show. The video size is the window's size when you started.
Audio only: Records the mic to WAV, MP3 or M4A. A small panel stays on screen while recording, with pause and stop.

3. Audio sources and gain

These are in the panel's Audio tab.

System audio: whatever the Mac is playing, captured directly. No virtual device like BlackHole, and your output device is never switched.
Microphone: pick the input device. If the VU meter moves, it's live. A closed MacBook's built-in mic records silence — pick an external mic or the display's mic.
Gain: system audio and mic separately, ×1 to ×16. A limiter at -1 dBFS means it never clips. You can change it while recording.
Audio is merged into one track: after you stop, Mac audio and mic are mixed into one stereo track (the video is untouched). Some video sites only use the first audio track, so separate tracks would lose your voice. On long recordings you'll see "Saving…" while it merges (about 30 s for a 12-minute recording).
While recording, the ⏺ in the menu bar blinks whenever audio is coming in. If it doesn't blink, nothing is being recorded.

4. Pause and stop

While recording, the menu bar shows ⏺ with the elapsed time. Click it for Pause and Stop.
Nothing is written while paused. Resume, and the recording continues in the same file with the pause removed (no split files). The macOS recording indicator stays on, but nothing is recorded.
Stop, and the file is shown in Finder.

5. Click effects and camera

Click effects: A click sound and a red ripple at the click, in both the audio and the picture.
Camera overlay: Puts your camera on screen. Drag to move, drag the edge to resize, the position is remembered. It's recorded as is. Both are in the Video tab.
Choosing the camera: With two or more cameras connected, pick one in the Camera menu (built-in, external or iPhone). A camera you plug in while the app is running shows up right away.
Framing (zoom): With the overlay on, press "Choose framing…" and a red frame appears over the full camera picture. Drag the frame to move it, drag a corner to resize. What's inside the frame is what the overlay shows (up to 4×). "Show all" puts it back. The framing is remembered.

6. Files

Recordings go to your Downloads folder to start with. Press "Change…" in the Other tab to pick any folder ("Use Downloads" puts it back). If the chosen folder is gone or can't be written to, the recording is saved to Downloads so nothing is lost. Files are named by date and time, e.g. RecOn Screen Recording 2026-10-03 21.30.00.mov (audio only: Audio Recording … .wav / .mp3).
HEVC video, AAC 48 kHz audio. The file is written every 5 seconds, so a crash keeps what was recorded.
MP3 is written with the bundled LAME at 192 kbps. If the conversion fails, the WAV is kept.
"Show last recording" opens the latest file in Finder.

7. Language and colors

Use the menu at the top right of the panel: English, Español, Français, Deutsch, Português, 简体中文, 繁體中文, 한국어, 日本語. The first launch follows your Mac's language.

Colors: Switch the panel's colors under "Colors" in the Other tab. The black-and-white circle on the far left is "Match Mac" (the default, a see-through background). The other seven are Dark, Mid Dark, Mid Light, Light, Blue, Green and Pink. The change is instant and remembered. Checkboxes and similar controls keep the standard Mac look (white on light colors, black on dark ones).

8. Troubleshooting

No audio in the recording — re-select the mic and check the VU meter moves. A closed MacBook's mic is silent.
"Screen Recording is off" — turn RecOn on under System Settings → Privacy & Security → Screen Recording and reopen the app.
Region recording doesn't start — click inside the frame or press the ⏺ REC in the middle (clicking outside cancels).
If that doesn't fix it, or you've found a bug, contact us. Include your Mac model, macOS version, app version, and what you did and what happened.

9. RecOn Pro features

RecOn Pro is a separate app (the silver icon) with everything above plus the following. You can install it alongside RecOn; their settings and permissions are kept apart.

Auto subtitles: Turn on "Auto subtitles" in the Other tab and RecOn Pro makes subtitles from your microphone (only when recording the mic). "SRT only" writes a subtitle file (.srt) next to the video; "Burn in" saves a separate video with the subtitles in it, in your choice of style (outline, black box, translucent) and size (small, normal, large). Transcription runs on your Mac; the first time, the transcription model (about 1.5 GB) is downloaded. Subtitles follow the app's language (Traditional Chinese isn't supported).
Online interview: When recording both the mic and the computer audio, the mic becomes "Me" and the computer audio becomes "Guest" in the subtitles. The guest's voice picked up by your mic is left out.
Auto zoom: Turn on "Zoom in where you click" in the Video tab and, after you stop, a version that zooms in on your clicks is saved as a separate file. The camera overlay isn't zoomed.
Shortcut display: "Show the shortcut keys you press" puts keys pressed with ⌘ or ⌃ on screen (normal typing isn't shown). Turn RecOn Pro on under System Settings → Privacy & Security → Accessibility.
Camera background: Under "Background", choose Original, Blur or Image. Image keeps just you and puts the picture you choose behind.
Preamp and noise removal: In the Audio tab. The preamp has five console characters plus drive, applied to the mic as you record. "Remove noise" removes background noise from the mic after you stop, leaving just your voice; the original is kept as a file marked "original voice".
After recording: Open "After recording" in the panel for tools that work on files you've recorded: remake subtitles (to include the computer audio), burn in an SRT you've corrected, remake the zoom, clip video (time and area), clip audio (MP3 / WAV), join videos.
Finishing: While subtitles and zoom are being finished, the progress shows next to the ⏺ in the menu bar. With "When the new video is ready, move the original (and its SRT) to the Trash" on, the original files go to the Trash once the new one is done.

The subtitles are instant subtitles made as you record. If a line breaks in an odd place, tell me and I'll fix it.