Today’s Worldwide Developer’s Conference keynote just kicked off… there’s been a ton of speculation (planted and lovingly watered by Apple’s secrecy) leading to this morning’s unveilings. Not sure if anything will impact podcasting or other new media, but rest assured I’ll post my thoughts later this afternoon if Jobs lowers the boom on anything like that…

A lot of people ask me what kind of investment is needed to start a podcast… if you already own a computer and have an Internet connection, the answer is “anywhere from $0 to $10 on the low end.” The great part about modern computers, whether you run a PC, a Mac or even a Linux box, is that they can handle almost all of the audio recording and editing you need for a basic show. Check out Todd Cochrane’s excellent rundown from Podcasting: The Do It Yourself Guide for some of the great free and low cost software options for the beginner. If you have a built in microphone, a free recorder and editing program like Audacity plus a free FTP program to transfer your shows up to a server will make you a podcaster for no additonal investment. No microphone? For beginners, I suggest starting with a low-cost ($10 or so) USB microphone, then advancing to a better microphone later on.

For those of you interested in an advanced set up, remember that most podcasts are so compressed that getting a super high end set of gear is probably not going to make much difference in the audio quality of your show. For most people, spending about $250 is about as much as you need to get the gear for a high quality, professional sound. More on that in future posts!

Leave it to the Europeans and their mobile phone systems… streaming podcasts. More evidence that this is the future. If I were a betting kind of guy, I’d put my money on this type of technology outpacing satellite radio, with the possible (narrow) exception of rural communities that cannot get mobile reception.

Olympus is doing something nice to foster podcasting in schools:

For schools looking to explore the frontiers of podcasting, Olympus and education software developer Tool Factory have launched a new grant program specifically for teachers. The program supplies mixing and recording hardware and software valued at $3,000.

Details are here. I’ve never used any of their equipment, but there are certainly a lot of deserving schools out there that could put some podcast gear to good use!

I posted last week about the HGTV Tech Toys shoot with my client Kimberly Wilson of Hip Tranquil Chick podcast… we recorded the segment with the M-Audio Podcast Factory last Friday morning. The nice thing about being Kimberly’s podcast producer is that I got a chance test drive the product she was featuring on the show… here are my thoughts…

I like the Podcast Factory for what it is… a simple, all-in-one unit that works on Windows and Mac operating systems. It comes with a small mixer (really just a digitizer) that hooks up to the computer’s USB port, and has an XLR input for a fairly simple dynamic microphone. It also comes with a nice, if not sturdy, folding mic stand. The real treat of the package is its overall size… it fits inside my small messenger bag and has none of the heft of my more typical setup (a Behringer mixer and condenser mics… it takes a suitcase when all is said and done to transport that beast!). The ease of use is another positive… it is a good product for beginners with its plug and play interface.

That being said, I think there are a couple of things going against the Podcast Factory. First, I would not recommend it for podcasters that need multiple mics in their setup or envision it in the future. I tried hooking up a microphone to the line-in in the back of the mixer and the results were fairly disastrous. There was a cycle hum and a clicking that wouldn’t go away. Second, I think the price point is a bit high for what you get… a dynamic mic and a small USB interface for $179 seems a bit steep when you can – for less – get a small mixer with multiple channels and a condenser mic. The oft-mentioned Samson USB mic seems to be a better value at around $80 than the Podcast Factory from an ease-of-use perspective.

I tested the Podcast Factory “in the field” to capture a speech for another client. For a dynamic mic in a large open room, I thought it actually did a nice job. Since it’s a directional microphone, the room noise didn’t pick up quite as much as a condenser mic would have, which made the sound scrubbing in post-production cleaner. You can check out the results here (MP3).

All things considered, the Podcast Factory is a nice package, but I think some podcasters would outgrow it. I see it fitting in as a travel set, but certainly not a replacement for a more robust setup.

One of my clients, Kimberly Wilson of Hip Tranquil Chick podcast, is going to be featured on HGTV’s I Want That!: Tech Toys. She’ll be taking a look at the M-Audio Podcast Factory, a software-hardware package that includes a simple mixer with a USB connection and a dynamic microphone… all in one. My initial reaction is that a dynamic mic isn’t as warm sounding as a cardioid, but I’ll hold off judgment until I hear the sound quality. I definitely like that the included software is both Mac and Windows compatible. Should be an interesting test drive… we tape next week!

With all the iPhone talk, maybe it’s time to look up to suburban Seattle and see what’s up with Microsoft. Their latest entry into the mp3 player field is the Zune. Sadly, the Zune has no real podcasting component because the software that works with it doesn’t have a viable podcatcher incorporated within it. This from the alleged #2 player on the market? Luckily we’ve learned from Paul Colligan’s blog something’s on the way from Microsoft… apparently they are “working on it.” Good news for podcasters… anything that makes it easier to get podcasts on any device (iPhone over the air… Zune, um, like at all) is a step in the right direction.

Well, it’s confirmed… amidst the massive onslaught of MSM attention given to the iPhone on this day after the Apple (no longer Apple Computer!) MacWorld keynote we learned that the iPhone will not have any over the air iTunes Store downloads. I think that’s a bit of a shortcoming of an otherwise amazing device, and it’s a particular bummer (technical term) for podcasters because the tantalizing prospect of an expanded audience access point is toast.

For now.

Why just for now? Well, two things… first, I am not sure Apple will keep iTunes out of the wireless download business forever. I suspect this exclusive deal with Cingular may be just the start, and it is Cingular that has possibly hobbled the iTunes wireless download feature so it doesn’t compete with its own music store. Once Apple can move out of the exclusive agreement, they’ll probably have more leverage.

Second, think about widgets for a second. If Apple is going to open up widget development for the iPhone Mac OS X like it did for the desktop/laptop OS X, then it’s entirely possible that a far-smarter-than-me person might be able to develop a widget that taps into the Internet connection to create some kind of podcatcher? Hmmmmm…. now THAT would be a cool workaround. To be continued…