Five podcasting gadgets

Ways to get yourself heard

1 July 2009 17:00 GMT / By Stuart Miles

Video might be all the rage at the moment, but that shouldn't stop you from making your own podcast to share your thoughts and experiences with the world wide web.

Here are five gadgets to get you started.

Samson microphone, £145
If you're going to record sound then you'll need a decent microphone, and the Samson C01U promises to be just that. With no drivers required for either PC or Mac use, all you have to do is plug in the microphone via a spare USB socket and away you go. Software in the box consists of an LE version of Sonar for the PC and you'll also get a stand so you can perch it on your desk just like you're a radio DJ. If you're looking to make decent recordings this is a good place to start whether you're a Mac or PC user.

Olympus LS-10, £269.99
Who says you need to be sitting in front of the computer to record your podcast? With the summer fast approaching the Olympus LS-10 will let you venture out into the wide open, with the opportunity of grabbing the odd comment from passers by. Coming with stereo microphones, the option to plug in an external mic and plenty of recording options on to an SD card this is the bees knees when it comes to digital voice recorders.

GarageBand, £79.99
One for the Mac boys, but while the software's main aim is to edit and master tracks for your burgeoning band, that doesn't mean it's no good for editing your podcast chatter. With plenty of features and the ability to lay multiple tracks and micro-manage them all, this will even help you create that opening jingle too with little trouble.

Belkin TuneStudio, £136
If you're inviting more people to get involved, that might mean multiple mics and a bigger setup than just you in front of your computer. The Belkin TuneStudio for iPod is a 4-channel audio mixer that lets you create digital recordings directly onto your iPod, meaning you can listen back to your recording without having to even touch a computer. While the mass of dials and buttons might be off putting at least it will let you turn down that rather annoying guest when you next want him or her to speak.

iPhone 3GS, Price dependent on contract
It might be a phone, and yes there are plenty of other phones on the market that offer this feature as well, but the new iPhone 3GS comes with its very own Voice Memo App that lets you, that's right, record voice memos by pressing a button. Once you're done, you can then send your ramblings to your mates in an email. Creating a podcast on the bus home never was so easy.

Do you podcast? If so, what gadgets do you use to produce and share your recordings? Let us know in the comments below.

Full tags

Audio, Software, Phones, Microphones, Features, Samson, Olympus, Apple, Belkin, Podcasts