A phone is not a compromise here, it is the correct device. Its camera is better than most laptop cameras, and it can be moved over an item — which is the entire advantage of selling live.
Before you start
1. Plug it in. A low battery throttles the radio before anything else, and the stream suffers first. Charging, on a stand, for the whole show.
2. Take the case off if it gets warm. Heat throttles the same way.
3. Pick one spot and stay in it. Walking around while broadcasting is the commonest cause of a mid-show drop. My stream keeps dropping
4. Test the network you will actually use. Broadcasting needs upload, and home connections are far weaker going out than coming in. Mobile data is often steadier than contested wifi. How fast does my internet need to be?
5. Close everything else. Backups and downloads compete for the same upload.
6. Rehearse on this exact setup. A rehearsal writes nothing real and is the only honest test. Can I practise before going live for real?
The camera and the light
A stand or a propped phone, not a held one. Your hands are for the item.
Light on the item, not behind it. A window behind you makes a silhouette. Daylight across the item is better than any lamp.
Fill the frame with the thing, not with you. People came for the object. Camera and light
Permissions
Your browser asks for the camera and microphone when you go live, and only then. If the camera will not start, that is usually the permission — occasionally another app holding it. What Metzee asks permission for, and why
While you are live
Move the item, not the phone. Turn it over, tilt it to the light, bring it close. That is what a photograph cannot do and what buyers are there for. Handling questions while you sell
Watch the chat in your first minute for "no sound" — feedback you cannot get any other way. I can see the show but cannot hear it
Keep the lineup within reach, in order.
If you want a second device
A producer on a second phone can run the lineup while you hold the item — the single biggest quality jump a busy show can make. Using two devices while hosting
If the connection drops
Do not end the show. The auction keeps running; bids live on the server, not in your broadcast. Switch network, rejoin, say what happened. What happens if my connection drops mid-show?
More: how to go live, camera and light, using a better camera for your shows.