REVIEW: Griffin’s iTalk Pro


100_0779.JPGGriffin makes a lot of accessories for Apple products. Some I love…others…not so much…but Griffin’s latest little gadget, the iTalk Pro is something special.

My wife has just been accepted into nursing school (and I’m very proud of her) . One thing that everyone has suggested is that she record her lectures so that she can type up notes later to ensure that she gets all of the information that they’re going to firing out in those classes. Right about the time she told me that she was going to be needing something like this, I got the opportunity to take a look at the iTalk Pro. I wasn’t sure how well an add-on like this was going to work, and wasn’t totally convinced that it would do the job well enough for her to use it instead of purchasing a dedicated digital recorder.

So, I decided to try the iTalk Pro out in a variety of settings and get a feel for how well the speaker system was going to pick the world around me up. The iTalk Pro has twin built-in mics that record directly to your iPod, and adjustable gain settings that give you control over the volume. You can even use external microphones…but I wanted to see what it could do on it’s own.

Boy…I was impressed.

The iTalk Pro picked up voices clearly from 24 ft away from me, and any of the up-close recording that I did was crystal clear. I even tried recording a conversation through a heavy coat (you know, like ya do), and as long as I was standing still (to keep the coat from making shuffling noises) I could hear the conversation as though the mics were right in front of me.

How It Works

The iTalk Pro is simple. Real simple. You connect it to the docking port on your Video iPod, and when you want to record something you press the iTalk button in the center of the device. A red light circles the button to let you know that it’s recording, and you’re good to go.

After you’ve finished your recording you simply press the button again, and your recording is stopped. You can then play it back whenever you like – it’s stored under Voice Memo. The next time you synch with iTunes, iTunes will ask you if you want to import your new Voice Memos. Tell it “yes” and you’re finished.

From there you can store it, email it, delete it, or take it into Garage Band and have your way with it.

Podcasting Possibilities

Podcasters take note, the iTalk Pro gives you really nice, clean, stereo recordings that I would think could be valuable to any mobile podcaster out there with an iPod. This would be great for interviews, or even beginning podcasting itself. You can import your audio files into your audio editor of choice and add music, commercials, those annoying car horn noises that talk show hosts love…whatever you want. There are real possibilities here.

Audio Quality

I was very pleased with the quality of the audio from the iTalk Pro.  Voices from far away were clear and easy to hear.  Certainly good enough for note taking.

When recording up close, the audio sounded clean and level, only occasionally did I get any fuzz or noise at all, and when I did it was hardly noticeable, and easily cleaned up in Garage Band.

Final Thoughts…

For $49.95 Griffin Technology has created a compact, powerful, and easy to use device that gives iPod owners one less thing to carry to class, and podcasters one more way to record their shows. The iTalk Pro has a vast array of uses, and is very good at what it does.

The iTalk Pro is on sale now.


Kossi Adzo

Kossi Adzo is a technology enthusiast and digital strategist with a fervent passion for Apple products and the innovative technologies that orbit them. With a background in computer science and a decade of experience in app development and digital marketing, Kossi brings a wealth of knowledge and a unique perspective to the Apple Gazette team.

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