Blue USB Mics

As podcasting continues to gain popularity, recording quality is becoming more and more important. Most laptops come with a built-in microphone, as do many desktops these days. However, the quality of built-in mics can vary greatly from one computer to the next. External mics often provide much higher quality recording levels. Many companies now produce USB mics. The benefit of USB mics is in most cases you can simply plug them into your USB port and your computer will recognize the mic without a special sound card or software.

Blue Microphones has a been making superb mics since 1995. Many professional recording artists and studios use Blue Mic exclusively.  Blue also has a great line of USB mics that have become the gold standard for podcasting.  Blue offers three different USB mics in their line up: Yeti, Snowball, and Snowflake.

Some basic mic terminology is needed to help understand the differences in micrphones. Cardioid mics pick up sounds coming from in front or from the sides of the mic. A cardioid mic doesn't pick up sound coming from the back of the mic. Omnidirectional mics on the other hand pick up sounds equally from all directions. Bidirectional mics pick up sounds from the front and back of the mic and ignore sounds coming from the sides.

The Blue Yeti  (shown on the right) provides the highest level of recording flexibility. The Yeti is THX certified and provides a level of clarity previously unheard of in USB mics. You can record  using  cardioid, omnidirectional, and bidirectional patterns.  What this means is the Yeti can record an individual, a group of people, or a traditional interview setting with an interviewer and an interviewee. This types of situations used to take multiple mics to get good sound quality. The Yeti will cost about $150. This is a great mic for leaving at your office or home and using in a set place where you won't need to transport it much.


The Blue Snowball (shown on the left) is the next in the line up. The Snowball is a cardioid or omnidirectional mic. It also offers a -10dB pad to help control loud environments or loud speaking individuals. The Snowball also is a bit more rugged than the Yeti making even more flexible and transportable.The Snowball will cost you around $99.


The Blue Snowflake (shown on the right) combines high quality recording with the ultimate in portability. The Snowflake is a cardioid mic with great quality. The case works as a stand or can hang on the screen of your laptop. The Snowflake is great for Skype, recording lectures, podcasting on the go, or even dictation. The $59 price tag and high quality recording makes the Snowflake a very popular mic.

iPad...First impressions

I've had my iPad for a couple of weeks now and I have to admit that I pretty much love this device. Granted, there are some limitations. For example, the Apple VGA connector doesn't actually project the screen of my iPad only specific apps is a limitation in the classroom. I would love to be able to project my iPad screen to my class for demonstrations, but right now I can't.

However, I find myself using my iPad more than my MacBook Pro. It is the device that I grab to check my mail, surf the web, play a game, and so on. It turns on in the blink of an eye and is quick to render a web page or load an app.

The battery life is great. I can use it for a couple of days and then plug it in at night and it's ready to go in the morning. The size is perfect. I haven't gotten a case to mine yet, but I think I will actually like it even better with a little heft around it. Plus I'll likely feel a bit safer with then too. This this is fragile.

I love the display. It is bright and clear. I have no problems reading news reports and articles on it. I do find myself longing for some cursor keys for simple edits, but I'm sure I'll get more comfortable with time.

One other thing that will come with time is the ability to print directly from the iPad. Right now it really doesn't work. There are some third party apps that make the claim, but none of the reviews are supporting the claims. As Apple begins to see the really instructional and educational power of the iPad, I'm certain both the projection and printing issues will be resolved.

For now, all I can say is I see the iPad as a game changer in education. It is relatively low cost, has great battery life, and educators could develop content specific apps pretty easily. Additionally, with Pages, Keynote, and Numbers, it can be used in many traditional ways as a content development tool. I'm excited to see where this product might take K12 and Higher Education.