BerryShot Documentation
Welcome to the official user guide for BerryShot. BerryShot is a fast, lightweight, privacy-first utility that resides silently in your macOS Menu Bar, providing advanced capture tools, native local OCR, and instant AI explanations.
1. Getting Started
BerryShot is designed exclusively for macOS Sonoma (14.0) or later. The app leverages Apple's native APIs (SwiftUI, Apple Vision OCR, and Sandbox Security) to achieve maximum performance and minimum battery impact.
Core Capabilities
- Blazing Fast Captures: Trigger crosshair cropping instantly using customizable hotkeys. Region, full-screen, and window capture via ScreenCaptureKit.
- Local OCR: Extract text from images without uploading to the cloud, utilizing Apple's machine learning in 0.1 seconds.
- AI Assistants: Query Xiaomi Mimo, OpenAI, Claude, Gemini, or OpenRouter to explain code, translate languages, or rewrite content with streaming responses.
- Live Meeting Transcription: Real-time speech-to-text from mic and system audio via Deepgram Nova or OpenAI Whisper. Generate AI meeting summaries with one click.
- Screen Recording: HEVC 60fps recording with system audio + microphone, pause/resume, dynamic region updates, and mic mute control.
- Cloud Storage: Upload to local directory, Google Drive, or custom API endpoints for shareable cloud links.
2. Installation Guide
To maintain standard integrity and prevent zip extraction friction, BerryShot is packaged inside a
single mounted Disk Image (.dmg) file.
Download DMG
Click the Download link on the homepage or
header to download BerryShot.dmg.
Mount & Drag
Double-click the downloaded file and drag the
BerryShot icon to your Applications folder.
Grant Permissions
Open BerryShot from Applications, and allow Screen Recording permissions in System Settings.
3. General Settings
General configurations allow you to customize how the application interacts with your system, notifications, and menus.
Launch at Login: Automatically starts BerryShot in the background when your Mac turns on.
Play Sound Effects: Triggers camera shutters and success alerts upon screenshot saving.
Show Notifications: Displays transient banners showing cropped preview and action statuses.
4. Annotations & Drawing
Once a screenshot area is selected, the custom drawing toolbar slides out. You can annotate directly onto the frame before saving or sharing.
Annotation Tools
- Pencil Tool: Free-hand sketch outlines or doodles.
- Shape Blocks: Draw pixel-perfect circles, ovals, and rectangles.
- Direction Arrows: Point to UI elements to highlight details.
- Custom Text: Type explanatory labels onto the picture.
Visual Properties
- Stroke width: Tweak annotation lines from fine thin to bold thick.
- Palette presets: Choose high-contrast colors (Strawberry Red, Neon Green, Royal Blue, Mustard Yellow).
- Undo / Redo: Instantly revert any strokes with standard macOS command.
5. Scrolling Capture
Capture entire webpages, long documents, or any scrollable content in a single stitched image. BerryShot automatically scrolls through the target window, captures each frame, and stitches them together seamlessly.
How to Use Scrolling Capture
- Press your capture shortcut (default: ββ§2) to enter capture mode
- Instead of drawing a region, click on the target window you want to capture
- Click the Scroll Capture button on the toolbar (or press S)
- BerryShot will automatically scroll through the content, capturing frames at each step
- A progress indicator shows the current frame count and estimated completion
- When complete, all frames are stitched into a single tall image
Configuration Options
- Scroll Step: Lines per scroll event (default: 8)
- Scroll Delay: Wait time between frames (default: 0.12s)
- Max Frames: Safety cap at 150 frames to prevent infinite capture
- Timeout: Total operation timeout of 120 seconds
Sticky Header/Footer Stripping
- Sticky Header Height: Configure to strip fixed navigation bars from stitched result
- Sticky Footer Height: Configure to strip fixed footers from the final image
- Auto-Detection: BerryShot attempts to detect overlapping content for cleaner stitching
6. Local Offline OCR
BerryShot stands out by executing optical character recognition (OCR) completely on your local device. Utilizing Apple's core Vision Framework, the app extracts text content in less than 100 milliseconds without internet latency or privacy leaks.
7. ChatGPT / Claude AI Explainer
Enhance your workflow by pairing extracted OCR text directly with Anthropic Claude or OpenAI ChatGPT models. When enabled, BerryShot sends the text along with prompt configurations to provide instant responses.
How to Set Up
- Open Preferences / Settings (β + ,) and switch to the AI Tab.
- In the Provider dropdown, choose one of 5 providers:
- Xiaomi Mimo β default provider, mimo-v2.5 model
- OpenAI β GPT-4o, GPT-4 Turbo, etc.
- OpenRouter β access to 100+ models via single API
- Google Gemini β Gemini Pro, Gemini Flash
- Anthropic Claude β Claude 3.5 Sonnet, Claude 3 Opus
- Enter your API key safely. The API key is stored securely in your macOS Keychain.
- Customize the Model name (e.g.
mimo-v2.5,gpt-4o,claude-3-5-sonnet-20240620). - Set the Output Language: English, Vietnamese, or Japanese.
- Click Save Key to store your credentials.
8. Screen Recording
BerryShot includes built-in screen recording powered by ScreenCaptureKit. Record your selected region with HEVC codec, system audio, and microphone β all with annotation overlays preserved.
Start Recording
Click the red Record button on the toolbar or press R. Only the selected region is captured as a video file.
Pause & Resume
Press P or click the pause button. The timer stops and resumes seamlessly with correct timestamp offsets.
HEVC 60fps Output
Records at 60fps using HEVC (H.265) codec at 50 Mbps for high-quality output. Supports Retina resolution via display backing scale factor.
System Audio + Microphone
Captures both system audio (e.g., video call participants) and microphone input simultaneously. Mute/unmute mic independently during recording.
Dynamic Region Update
Move or resize the selection rectangle during recording β the capture region updates in real-time without stopping the recording.
Auto-Open in Finder
After stopping, the saved .mov file automatically opens in Finder at the configured storage directory.
9. Live Meeting Notes & Transcription
Real-time speech-to-text transcription powered by Deepgram Nova or OpenAI Whisper. BerryShot captures both your microphone and system audio simultaneously, displaying live captions in a floating window during screen recording.
Step 1: Choose a Transcription Provider
Open Settings (β + ,) β click the AI tab β scroll down to the Live Transcription section.
In the Provider dropdown, choose one of:
| Provider | Latency | Cost | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Off (SFSpeech) | N/A | Free | Built-in Apple Speech, English only, not real-time |
| Deepgram | ~300ms | $0.0043/min | $200 free credit on signup. Best for Vietnamese |
| OpenAI Realtime | ~200ms | $0.006/min | Uses Whisper model via Realtime API |
Step 2: Configure API Key & Model
For Deepgram
- Create an account at deepgram.com (get $200 free credit)
- Go to API Keys in the Deepgram Console and copy your key
- Paste into the API Key field in BerryShot
- Model: leave as default
nova-2or change tonova-3 - Click Save Key
For OpenAI Realtime
- Get an API key from platform.openai.com
- Paste into the API Key field (format:
sk-...) - Model:
gpt-realtime-whisper(this is the only model that supports transcription) - Base URL: Leave empty to use OpenAI default, or enter a custom endpoint
- Click Save Key
Step 3: Set Language
In the Language dropdown, choose your preferred recognition language:
- Auto detect β let the provider detect language automatically
- π»π³ Vietnamese β optimized for Vietnamese speech (recommended for Vietnamese meetings)
- πΊπΈ English β optimized for English speech
- π―π΅ Japanese β optimized for Japanese speech
Step 4: Start Live Transcription
- Press your capture shortcut (default: ββ§2) or click Capture Region in the menu bar
- Select the screen region you want to record
- Click the Record button (red circle) on the toolbar β this starts both screen recording and live transcription simultaneously
- A floating Live Meeting Notes window will appear at the bottom-right of your screen, showing real-time transcription
- Speak into your microphone β your words appear labeled as "You"
- System audio (e.g., other participants in a video call) appears labeled as "Other"
Step 5: Generate Meeting Minutes
- While recording (or after stopping), click the "Generate Meeting Minutes" button in the Live Meeting Notes window
- BerryShot sends the full transcript to your configured AI provider (from the Authentication section above)
- The AI generates a structured Markdown document with:
- Summary β brief overview of the meeting
- Key Discussion Points β main topics covered
- Decisions Made β agreed-upon outcomes
- Action Items β next steps and responsibilities
- The result appears in a floating AI window with streaming text β you can copy it with one click
Live Meeting Notes Window Features
Real-time Streaming
Partial text appears as you speak (italic), finalized when you finish a sentence
Two-Source Labels
Mic input = "You" (green), System audio = "Other" (blue)
Auto-Scroll
Window automatically scrolls to show the latest transcription
Copy Transcript
One-click copy of the full formatted transcript with timestamps
Always on Top
Floating window stays above all other windows during your meeting
Mic Mute Aware
Transcription pauses when you mute the microphone during recording
10. Screenshot History
BerryShot automatically saves your capture history using SwiftData. Browse, search, and manage all your previous screenshots directly from the app without needing to locate files manually in Finder.
History Features
Auto-Save
Every screenshot is automatically saved to history with timestamp metadata
SwiftData Storage
Uses Apple's modern SwiftData framework for efficient local persistence
Quick Access
Access history from menu bar to re-copy, re-upload, or delete past captures
Sorted by Date
History is sorted newest-first with creation timestamps for easy browsing
11. Cloud Upload Configuration
Easily share screenshots and recordings by configuring your preferred storage destination. BerryShot supports three storage providers in v1.1.2.
Local Directory (Default)
Saves files to ~/Library/Application Support/BerryShot/.
Click "Change Directory..." to select a custom folder.
Google Drive
Enter your OAuth Access Token and Refresh Token. Files are uploaded via Google Drive API v3 and a shareable link is automatically copied to your clipboard.
Custom Service API
Upload to any custom endpoint. Supports Access Token (Bearer) or API Key + Secret authentication. Configure the Endpoint URL and Callback URL to parse the returned shareable link.
12. Privacy & Permissions
Because BerryShot captures your screen and audio, macOS enforces strict security access checks. You must explicitly authorize the required permissions before the app can function.
Screen Recording Permission
Required for screen capture and recording. Navigate to System Settings β Privacy & Security β Screen Recording, and toggle BerryShot ON.
Microphone Permission
Required for live transcription and screen recording with audio. Navigate to System Settings β Privacy & Security β Microphone, and toggle BerryShot ON.
13. Support & Contact
If you run into issues, have feature proposals, or require business assistance, please email our support address.
Contact Developer Team
We respond to email inquiries within 24-48 business hours.