Beam vs DesktopScreenMirror
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side β with what reviewers say about each.
Beam
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See your Mac on your iPhone or iPad, and control it from there. Beam streams your Mac's screen and sound to your phone. Tap to click, type with real Mac keys, run your own shortcuts and macros, and play Mac games with a controller. Answer a prompt on the Mac from the couch. Keep a film going in bed. Watch a render finish from the kitchen, then tap in when it needs you. CONTROL YOUR MAC FROM YOUR PHONE β’ Click mode: tap to click, double or triple tap, touch and hold then lift to right-click, touch and hold then move to drag, slide two fingers to scroll β’ Live keyboard with a row of Mac keys above it: esc, tab, arrows, home, end, page up and down, F1 to F12, plus command, option, control and shift (tap for one use, hold to lock) β’ A bar of up to eight buttons you design in Beacon on the Mac: keys and shortcuts, media keys, recorded macros, a text box, the live keyboard and click mode β’ Pair a game controller with your iPhone or iPad and your Mac sees a real gamepad. No driver to install. STREAM YOUR MAC β’ Your whole Mac display, or one window you pick from the phone β’ Mac audio on your phone, or turn it off β’ About 25 ms typical delay on good home Wi-Fi β’ Up to 4K or your Mac display's native resolution β’ Up to 120 fps on ProMotion iPhones and iPads when your Mac's display runs that fast β’ Picture in Picture, pinch to zoom, and crop to one area of the screen β’ Flip the picture for teleprompter glass SET UP IN ABOUT 2 MINUTES 1. Install the free Beacon app on your Mac from beamscreen.app. It needs macOS 14 or later. 2. Open Beam on the same Wi-Fi and tap Pair Your Mac. 3. Type the 6-digit code Beacon shows. You only pair once. PRIVATE BY DESIGN β’ The stream goes straight from your Mac to your phone. It never passes through a Beam server. β’ The picture, the sound, your clicks and everything you type are encrypted end to end with keys from your pairing. β’ No account, no sign-up, no email. β’ Beam and Beacon are open source under AGPL-3.0. FREE, THEN BEAM UNLIMITED β’ Your first stream starts a 3-day trial with no limits. β’ After that, 30 minutes of streaming in every 24 hours on your home Wi-Fi, with every feature and every quality setting. β’ Beam Unlimited is a one-time purchase, not a subscription. It removes the time limit and lets you stream and control your Mac from anywhere over your own Tailscale network (free for personal use). GOOD TO KNOW β’ Clicking and typing from the phone need Accessibility permission for Beacon on the Mac. β’ Beam shows and controls your Mac's screen. It doesn't add a second display, move files or sync the clipboard. β’ Beacon runs on Macs only, not Windows or Linux. β’ Beam needs iOS 16 or later. Questions go to support@beamscreen.app. A person reads every message, usually within a day.
DesktopScreenMirror
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Mirror Your Mac Screen to iPhone β Fully Local, Lightning Fast, Completely Private Want to watch a movie from your Mac in bed? Or present your Mac screen using your iPhone in a meeting? This app streams your macOS desktop directly to your iPhone over local network β no internet connection, no data upload, no privacy intrusion. Key Features Lowβlatency streaming β Optimized for local networks for smooth, responsive mirroring High resolution support β See every detail of your Mac screen, perfect for Retina displays Fully local operation β All data stays between your devices, never touches any server Zero data collection β We do not track, log, or upload any user information Use Cases Use your iPhone as a wireless secondary display for your Mac Demonstrate Mac apps or workflows to colleagues or friends Watch videos, view presentations or design files from your Mac on iPhone Privacy Commitment Absolutely no internet connection required. No personal data is ever collected. Your data remains on your devices. We cannot see or access your screen content. For support or feedback, feel free to contact us.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: DesktopScreenMirror at none against Beam's 2. Beam's advantage is update cadence (every 10 days vs every 2 months). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price Β· Rating Β· Positive reviews Β· Number of ratings Β· Update frequency Β· Ads Β· In-app purchases Β· Monetization Β· Best chart rank Β· Devices Β· Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Beam sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. DesktopScreenMirror asks for nothing beyond the download.
Beam ships an update every 10 days, DesktopScreenMirror every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 28, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Beam | DesktopScreenMirror |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Update frequency | Every 10 days β better | Every 2 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No β better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | 16.0 |
| Further details β not scored | ||
| Size | 18 MB | 14 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | KEVIN ERIK IIN | θ±ε½¬ θ΅΅ |
In-app purchases
Beam
- Beam Unlimited2 variants$7.99
DesktopScreenMirror
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Beam free?
Is DesktopScreenMirror free?
Do Beam or DesktopScreenMirror have ads?
Which is updated more often, Beam or DesktopScreenMirror?
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