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• Belkin TuneTalk Stereo Microphones

  

  perfect for school

  Written by DS from FREMONT

  Aug 24, 2006

  After long research I decided to buy this over micromemo.. here are the reasons:
  1: It can charge while you record long lectures...
  2: you dont have carry a microphone plus the recorder. Belkin's microphone is located inside the recorder.
  3: Recording quality is very clear, its does pick up the hard disk noise once in a while but its not that bad.
  I think if you are looking for a recorder for school purpose, definitely get this one over the micromemo because of the charging ability but if you are an artist and want nothing but clear sound with no hard drive noise then get the micromemo...... i hope this helps. …More

  474 of 544 people found this useful

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• Belkin TuneTalk Stereo Microphones

  

  Hard Disk Noise (and Ugly)

  Written by JF from Washington

  Jul 27, 2006

  This is one of three high quality audio recorders that are or soon will be available for the 5G iPod video: Belkin Tunetalk, Griffin iTalk Pro, and Xtrememac Micromemo. The best reviews, as always, are at iLounge.
  The Belkin and the Griffin both have built-in stereo microphones. The stereo is useless and built-in means hard disk noise on the recording. Also the Belkin and Griffin lack speakers, and the Belkin has too many buttons and is just bug-eyed ugly.
  The Belkin has two unique features. First, it can be used when the iPod is in a case (at least a Belkin case, and probably most others) – a big advantage. Second, the Belkin has a mini-USB port that can be used to charge, synchronize, or – most important – power the iPod while it is recording. This is critical for some users because, due to constant hard-disk usage, a 30 GB 5G iPod can only record 1.5 hours and a 60 GB model 3.5 hours of digital audio before the battery dies. On the other hand, for those of us are not going to carry around an AC adaptor anyway, this is a reason to be annoyed at Apple rather than to choose one iPod recorder over another. (Why couldn't they have kept a small-file, low-power recording option for those of us who just want to record lectures or conversation?)
  (FYI, Apple has provided two voice recording quality options for the 5G iPod video: 'CD quality' at 1.4 mbps stereo and 'low quality' at 352 kbps mono – 5.5 times the bit-rate of an iTunes mono download.)
  The Griffin is less ugly than the Belkin, but lacks the iPod-case feature and the mini-USB port, and like the Belkin has built-in stereo microphones (i.e., hard disk noise) and no speaker.
  My choice is the Xtrememac Micromemo, both because it has a separate (detachable) mono microphone and because it has a speaker. The separate microphone means no hard disk noise on your recordings. (You can also attach better quality stereo microphones, as you can with the other two as well.) The speaker means that you can listen to recordings immediately without using headphones. Also, I would assume that you can use the speaker to listen to songs or podcasts as well as voice memo recordings – a whole new market for Xtrememac.
  The main disadvantage of the Micromemo, aside from the lack of the Belkin's iPod-case feature and mini-USB port (and the fact that it's not for sale yet), is that the fools put an on/off button right in the middle of the speaker. This has to mean a lower-quality speaker – and anyway, why can't everything be controlled through the buttons on the iPod itself? (The ideal iPod voice recorder would have only a microphone input, a speaker, and a pass-through dock connector.) But for now, for me, it's the best choice. …More

  446 of 552 people found this useful

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• Belkin TuneTalk Stereo Microphones

  

  great product, just a couple of nitpicks

  Written by RJ from Waukesha

  Aug 25, 2006

  I found that the quality of the recording using the built-in mic was better than I'd expected and very clear, even at the low-quality setting. It's also very easy to use.
  
  There were a couple of surprises, however. I wasn't expecting that external microphones (self-powered lapel mics) would record at only half the volume of the built-in mic, and the subtle background hiss reminds me of recording on cassette tape. Maybe this is simply not possible with any mic of this type, but it would be really nice to be able to monitor the recording through the earbuds and make any needed adjustments in mic settings or placement as needed, rather than having to play it back later and hope for the best.
  
  Overall, though, for recording notes and podcasts, this is a great device, and never having to take my iPod out of its case to use it is a nice plus. …More

  298 of 376 people found this useful

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