MacGeek Pro

Original iTalk

Many a moon ago, I had a nifty little recorder for my third generation iPod (my first beloved iPod). I used in college to record any presentations I did and lectures. Back then, the iPod had a connector next to the headphone jack called the remote port. This little recorder was called the iTalk by Griffin Technology, and it used the remote port to interface with the iPod, instead of using the brand new (at the time) Dock connector that we are all so familiar with.

This was a great little device, but there was a fatal problem when I upgraded to the fourth generation iPod a year and a half later—the new iPod ditched the remote port. Apple had chosen to favor the superior Dock connector over the remote port, thus making my iTalk useless.

Griffin eventually released the iTalk Pro, which they still sell, for use with the Dock connector, but I never upgraded. Because Griffin was still a fairly small company back then, it took some time for the new product to come to fruition. In that time, I lost my taste for recording.

iTalk

When I bought my iPhone, I wondered if there would be an application that would utilize the microphone to record conversations, speeches, etc. Today I found my answer. Griffin has released iTalk Recorder [App Store link] for iPhone (and the second generation iPod touch) on the App Store.

This is a very polished app that is much more intuitive than the old iPod’s built in recording options. iTalk for iPhone allows you to title a track, select between Good, Better, or Best recording quality, and allows you to append further recording onto any previous recording. Even playback of the recording is pretty, as it mimics the iPhone’s Visual Voicemail interface. You can also delete a recording fromt he device if you no longer need it.

 Another gem Griffin has added as a compliment is iTalk Sync, a desktop application for Mac & Windows (Windows version coming soon). iTalk Sync allows iTalk on your iPhone to transfer files through your local wireless network. I used this app to transfer a test recording, and then used iTunes to convert it to a more bandwidth-friendly AAC file, and I‘ve uploaded it for your audio sampling pleasure. Nevermind, WordPress wasn’t cooperating, and I got frustrated. The app takes nice recordings, trust me. ;)

Well, that pretty much sums up my review. I give the app 4 out of 5 stars. Also, for a limited time, iTalk is free in the App Store. No word on how long this deal will last, nor how much it will cost when the offer has expired.

Review, iPhone, iPod