RØDE is very popular brand for professional microphones. Other than the pro-level equipment, Rode also produces consumer products. I was trying my hands on the VideoMic Me smartphone microphone hat is available for iPhone, iPad and Android devices.
In this article, I am going to share the detailed hands-on review of Rode VideoMic Me microphone considering all of its pros, cons and whether you should buy it or not.
Rode VideoMic Me comes in a nice box that looks pretty big considering the size of the microphone itself but it is due to the furry “dead cat” windshield.
Inside the box, you will find a nice plastic casing in which the Rode VideoMic Me microphone, a windshield, adjustable mount, user manual and a pack of silicon gel crystal to avoid any moisture placed in slots perfectly.
You can watch the Rode VideoMic Me smartphone mic unboxing video and detailed hands-on review along with recording samples in various conditions below.
The design of Rode VideoMic Me is catchy and the build quality is of top notch. VideoMic Me is a directional shotgun designed microphone. So the diaphragm is on the front and on the back there is 3.5mm plug to connect the mic to the smartphone. It weighs just 34 grams and is 80mm long and 21mm thick. So, it can be easily carried anywhere.
The whole body is enclosed in high quality aluminum casing that looks durable and beautiful, both. On the back of the microphone, there is a 3.5mm audio jack provided where a headphone can be connected to listen the input to the microphone and what is being recorded.
The adjustable mount is designed to be placed on the back of the microphone and when used, it restricts any movement of the microphone when connected to the phone to avoid any loss in audio recording quality.
One thing to be noticed here is that the VideoMic Me is designed for the iPhone and iPad where the audio port is at bottom and away from the camera. Though it works perfectly on Android phones too, if the audio port is near to the camera module then in few phones the VideoMic Me can come into the frame. But you can get rid of this by just zooming in a bit.
If you are going to use the windshield then, most probably it will cover the camera and view will be obstructed. So keep this thing in mind and better to check your Android smartphone’s audio jack placement first if you are planning to buy VideoMic Me for video blogging.
Still it can be used for voice recording perfectly does not matter which Android smartphone got as you will not worry about the camera and video recording.
So, overall the design of Rode VideoMic Me is great. It is lightweight, beautiful, comes in very strong casing and has some additional features as well. For Android users, they just need to make sure about their purpose and smartphone design first before buying the product.
Rode VideoMic Me is very easy to use. All you need to do is to connect the microphone to your iPhone or Android smartphone’s 3.5mm audio jack and you are good to go. You can use it for both rear and front-facing camera, you just need to keep the microphone in the direction from which you want audio to be recorded.
Most of the camera app and audio recording app will detect the external microphone connected and will start recording the audio using it only. If the default camera and voice recording app of your Android smartphone does not support the external microphone then, you can use various feature rich third-party apps like Open Camera, Cinema FV-5 for video recording and Reg Force etc. for audio recording.
You can connect a headphone to the 3.5mm audio jack on the back of the VideoMic Me that allows play-through of audio. Most of the time, you will have to use a third-party app like Cinema FV-5 for this function. But for pro-users, it is very nice and useful feature.
Another good thing about this feature is that you do not need to remove the microphone from the smartphone and connect your earphones to listen the audio recorded. You can do it right away by connecting an earphone to VideoMic Me smartphone mic itself.
There is an adjustable mount provided that provides good grip to the microphone and avoid any movement of the microphone. Plus it let you use the microphone with smartphones with different thickness easily.
The audio quality of Rode VideoMic Me smartphone mic is impressive. The indoor recording is not so much different compared to the built-in microphone of the smartphones but it records audio in a bit better quality with less noise, low background sound, and with more clarity and bass.
In outdoor, the performance of VideoMic Me improves as it reduces the sound and noise in the background that you would like to avoid for sure.
But the real magic comes when you use the furry windshield with VideoMic Me smartphone mic. It reduces the wind noise to great extent and let you record audio without any issues even in the most noisy condition. If you are vlogger who likes to record smartphone videos in outdoors then, Rode VideoMic Me is the best option for you all because of the windshield and its great performance.
Rode VideoMic Me smartphone mic is a nice and must have smartphone accessory for everyone, specially for video bloggers and those who record outdoor videos a lot. It is beautiful, lightweight, durable and comes with great build quality. It comes with extra features like background sound reduction and 3.5mm audio jack for audio play-through.
The quality of audio recording is better compared to the default smartphone microphone and the dead cat furry windshield works brilliantly and eliminates the wind noise nearly entirely.
If you are looking for an external microphone for your iPhone, iPad or Android devices then Rode VideoMic Me smartphone mic is the best option for you.
In this article, I am going to share the detailed hands-on review of Rode VideoMic Me microphone considering all of its pros, cons and whether you should buy it or not.
RØDE VideoMic Me Smartphone Mic : Detailed Hands-on Review
Retail Box and Unboxing
Rode VideoMic Me comes in a nice box that looks pretty big considering the size of the microphone itself but it is due to the furry “dead cat” windshield.
Inside the box, you will find a nice plastic casing in which the Rode VideoMic Me microphone, a windshield, adjustable mount, user manual and a pack of silicon gel crystal to avoid any moisture placed in slots perfectly.
You can watch the Rode VideoMic Me smartphone mic unboxing video and detailed hands-on review along with recording samples in various conditions below.
Design
The design of Rode VideoMic Me is catchy and the build quality is of top notch. VideoMic Me is a directional shotgun designed microphone. So the diaphragm is on the front and on the back there is 3.5mm plug to connect the mic to the smartphone. It weighs just 34 grams and is 80mm long and 21mm thick. So, it can be easily carried anywhere.
The whole body is enclosed in high quality aluminum casing that looks durable and beautiful, both. On the back of the microphone, there is a 3.5mm audio jack provided where a headphone can be connected to listen the input to the microphone and what is being recorded.
The adjustable mount is designed to be placed on the back of the microphone and when used, it restricts any movement of the microphone when connected to the phone to avoid any loss in audio recording quality.
One thing to be noticed here is that the VideoMic Me is designed for the iPhone and iPad where the audio port is at bottom and away from the camera. Though it works perfectly on Android phones too, if the audio port is near to the camera module then in few phones the VideoMic Me can come into the frame. But you can get rid of this by just zooming in a bit.
If you are going to use the windshield then, most probably it will cover the camera and view will be obstructed. So keep this thing in mind and better to check your Android smartphone’s audio jack placement first if you are planning to buy VideoMic Me for video blogging.
Still it can be used for voice recording perfectly does not matter which Android smartphone got as you will not worry about the camera and video recording.
So, overall the design of Rode VideoMic Me is great. It is lightweight, beautiful, comes in very strong casing and has some additional features as well. For Android users, they just need to make sure about their purpose and smartphone design first before buying the product.
Ease of Use
Rode VideoMic Me is very easy to use. All you need to do is to connect the microphone to your iPhone or Android smartphone’s 3.5mm audio jack and you are good to go. You can use it for both rear and front-facing camera, you just need to keep the microphone in the direction from which you want audio to be recorded.
Most of the camera app and audio recording app will detect the external microphone connected and will start recording the audio using it only. If the default camera and voice recording app of your Android smartphone does not support the external microphone then, you can use various feature rich third-party apps like Open Camera, Cinema FV-5 for video recording and Reg Force etc. for audio recording.
You can connect a headphone to the 3.5mm audio jack on the back of the VideoMic Me that allows play-through of audio. Most of the time, you will have to use a third-party app like Cinema FV-5 for this function. But for pro-users, it is very nice and useful feature.
Another good thing about this feature is that you do not need to remove the microphone from the smartphone and connect your earphones to listen the audio recorded. You can do it right away by connecting an earphone to VideoMic Me smartphone mic itself.
There is an adjustable mount provided that provides good grip to the microphone and avoid any movement of the microphone. Plus it let you use the microphone with smartphones with different thickness easily.
Audio Recording Quality
The audio quality of Rode VideoMic Me smartphone mic is impressive. The indoor recording is not so much different compared to the built-in microphone of the smartphones but it records audio in a bit better quality with less noise, low background sound, and with more clarity and bass.
In outdoor, the performance of VideoMic Me improves as it reduces the sound and noise in the background that you would like to avoid for sure.
But the real magic comes when you use the furry windshield with VideoMic Me smartphone mic. It reduces the wind noise to great extent and let you record audio without any issues even in the most noisy condition. If you are vlogger who likes to record smartphone videos in outdoors then, Rode VideoMic Me is the best option for you all because of the windshield and its great performance.
Conclusion
Rode VideoMic Me smartphone mic is a nice and must have smartphone accessory for everyone, specially for video bloggers and those who record outdoor videos a lot. It is beautiful, lightweight, durable and comes with great build quality. It comes with extra features like background sound reduction and 3.5mm audio jack for audio play-through.
The quality of audio recording is better compared to the default smartphone microphone and the dead cat furry windshield works brilliantly and eliminates the wind noise nearly entirely.
If you are looking for an external microphone for your iPhone, iPad or Android devices then Rode VideoMic Me smartphone mic is the best option for you.