Correction 1: In the podcast, I said this is mini-podcast 34. However, it is really mini-podcast 35.
Correction 2: In the podcast, I said it does not use Bluetooth because that it what the product description said. However, the dongle itself appears to use Bluetooth 4.0.
I have been thinking about recording interview/discussion type podcasts outdoors for a while. I found a low cost (US$27) lav mic that has a wireless dongle with Lightning, USB-A, and USB-C adapters — allowing it be used with nearly any device. ABSGEEGA Wireless USB Lavalier Lapel Microphone for iPhone& iPad& Android Phones
The lav’s product info on Amazon states that no Bluetooth is necessary. However, the dongle it ships with appears to be a Bluetooth 4.0 receiver. The receiver has a USB-C plug for Android and other devices with a USB-C port, a lightning adapter for Apple devices that still use lightning (e.g., iPhone), and a USB-A plug for other devices. The kit includes two wireless lav mics which is perfect for the outdoors-with-a-guest podcast concept. The receiver is powered by the recording device. The lav mics are charged using a USB-C cable.
The receiver is plug-and-play. There was not any special configuration or pairing needed to get it to work with the lav mics. I used Apple’s Voice Memos app to record this mini-podcast. The first three minutes were recorded using one of the two wireless lav mics. The last minute was recorded using the iPhone 14 Pro’s built-in mic. The audio recorded using the lav mic sounded a little muddy to me with what sounded like a little vibrato in my speech. However, the muddiness and vibrato may have been an artifact of my sloppy mic placement for this initial test.
The segment using the iPhone’s built-in mic sounded much more natural to me: No muddiness or vibrato. However, there was a lot of ambient sound because of the lack of a wind shield. This might be preferable in some cases if the idea is to highlight the fact that the recording is being done outdoors.
Overall, it is hard to complain about a sub-$30 product that performs as advertised.
I plan to test the wireless lav mic using Just Press Record app for the iPhone (US$4.99) with transcription next.
Available via Google Music Podcasts and Apple iTunes.