Shure SM58 & SM57 mics have a reputation for being reliable to the point of being indestructible. 
They’re popular with musicians, because they’re cheap and you can store them in the back of a van without worrying about breaking them. The SM58 is popular with podcasters, too, because it’s fairly cheap and delivers great sound for the price. 
Mats Stålbröst, editor [...]

Vicoustic has introduced a budget solution for recording vocals, Flexi Screen Lite.
The £65.00 unit has a dual functionality, absorbing the singer’s energy on the inside to give a less ambient sound, while at the same time, partially absorbing scattered room reflections on the outside. According to Vicoustic, Flexi Screen Lite’s acoustic foam has optimum density and thickness, using a [...]

As part of Google’s 10th anniversary, the company asked ten of its experts for their take on the future of the Internet. 
Today they posted “father of the Internet” Vint Cerf’s take, and he keys in on two trends that we’ve focused on because of their importance to new media - mobile content creation and Internet [...]

Take Control Books has published a new ebook, Take Control of Podcasting on the Mac, 2nd Edition.
The ebook, by Andy J. Williams Affleck, covers what you need to begin your first podcast, without spending much (if any) money.
Changes in the book include coverage of WireTap Studio and Übercaster; updated Garageband coverage and tips on getting great interviews. 
Take Control of [...]

Earlier in the year, we had a preview of Belkin’s GoStudio iPod Recorder.
Belkin has now released full information on the GoStudio, and it looks like it will be a hot, reasonably priced device for recording directly to your iPod.
Here are the details:

Record directly to your iPod in 16-bit, 44kHz digital audio quality
Instantly play back your [...]

Audix Microphones has introduced a new mic, the Audix USB12, that is designed to gives you “studio quality sound” at your desktop
The UDSB12 is a low-profile desktop gooseneck microphone, designed for recording voice and acoustic instruments directly into the computer via the USB port.
Features:

12 mm modular threaded capsule for accuracy.
The USB12 is a plug and [...]

Alesis has introduced the ProTrack, a device that turns an iPod into a professional handheld digital stereo recorder.
Two high-quality condenser microphones are built-in, fixed in XY stereo configuration. ProTrack also offers users a pair of combination XLR - 1/4-inch inputs for connection for external microphones and line sources. When running on plug-in power using the [...]

BusinessWeek has a review today of Belkin’s TuneStudio for iPod 5th generation, a four-channel audio mixer that lets you create high-quality digital recordings directly onto your iPod.
TuneStudio lets you input up to four different instruments or audio sources, and record the audio directly onto your iPod.
Per BusinessWeek:
Although TuneStudio supports four simultaneous audio inputs, recordings to [...]

Blue Microphones has introduced a new microphone designed for mobile use, the Snowflake.

Blue calls it “the first professional portable USB mic, and recommends it for mobile podcasting, VoIP software (such as Skype and Vonage), field recording, lecture recording and music recording.

It retails for $79.

Coutant.org, the site of Professor S.O. Coutant, features a wide rang eof information about the types of microphones used in broadcasting and recording studios.
It’s very comprehensive, with detailed information on the most commonly used mics in broadcasting, bios of communication pioneers and information on celebrities and the mics they used.
The site doesn’t give you quick [...]