Boya Mini Mic Review - The BEST Wireless Mic for iPhone
I love my Boya Mini mic. Here's why...
I was in the market for a wireless microphone for my iPhone. I still use the Sony X3000, but let's be honest, it's a bit dated.
As I've retired from vlogging and am going to do more topical videos (since that gets a better response, makes better ad revenue and people find more value in it), I need a new approach.
Either I need to get a new action camera with better video quality or use my iPhone. I've decided to go with the iPhone as the video quality is quite good and well, I already own an iPhone.
But the audio?
Eh, it's pretty mid overall. Particularly if there is background noise.
I made a few "walk and talk" style videos and I noticed my iPhone audio to be pretty awful when outside in a noisy environment. My audience (you all) also commented on the poor audio quality too.
So I knew that if I wanted to seriously record with my iPhone I needed to get a mic. Overall, I'm super happy with the Boya Mini.
For just $50, it unlocks my iPhone as a viable alternative to the X3000. Instead of spending $500-$600 on a new action camera, I spent $50 on a mic that allows me to use the great camera I already have in my pocket, my iPhone.
Example of using the Boya Mini
Voice over and narration in this video was done with the Boya Mini.
It sounds good right? I love it. Get the Boya Mini for yourself here (on Amazon).
Other brands I looked at
Unlike faceless brands, I actually bought and use this mic so let me explain why this mic is so great. I did look at other options but here is why I did not buy them.
The Lark M2 / M2 S - This was this mic I was going to get until I stumble upon a YouTube video of a guy using the Boy Mini. In short the Boya is smaller, has the same quality audio and cheaper. The M2 S version also sounds a bit worse to me compared to both the Boya Mini and the Lark M2.
DJI Mic Mini - This mic is expensive and DJI's branding is all over it. In general, this seemed to be a bit overkill for what I was looking for. Not to mention that while this mic is small, the Lark M2 and Boya Mini are properly small, and sound just as good to me.
Selling points of the Boya Mini
Alright, so after owning the Boya Mini and using it to make a bunch of video with, here is my review of the Boya Mini microphone and the pros of using it.
Quality audio
Leading off is the audio quality. It performs very well in a quite environment, giving you a nice, deep rich audio. It also works very well in a noisy environment.
My video on the cost of living in Saigon was done at a cafe where they were still constructing the upstairs. Meaning there was banging metal, drills, Vietnamese guys yelling at one another. All the while I was sitting in front of a street with cars and motorbikes driving past.
This mic crushed it. It did a fantastic job of blocking out any annoying background noise to the point where and you could not even tell the cafe I was sitting at was noisy.
On top of that I did not even have noise cancelling on. Overall, again for $50 this little mic is perfect for me. Want the tech specs? Here you go 👇
- Type: 2.4GHz digital frequency wireless microphone system.
- Built-in omnidirectional condenser microphones in transmitters
- Limiter Technology: Prevents audio peaking or clipping for high-fidelity sound (within reason).
- Transmitter Weight: 5g (0.2 oz) each.
- Range: 100 meters.
- Audio Quality:Sampling Rate: 48 kHzBit Depth: 16-bitFrequency Response: 20 Hz - 20 kHzSignal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR): 80 dBMaximum Sound Pressure Level (SPL): 120 dB
If you do decide to use this mic, it does sound best if you hold the mic in your hand and speak into it. If it's clipped to your shirt, the sound is a bit more muffled, but you can adjust pretty easily in post.
Noise cancelling
This mic does come with the ability to turn on noise cancellation. It's a 3-level AI-powered environmental noise cancellation (ENC) feature.
It's adjustable via single-click on receiver. When activated the receiver color turns from blue (ENC off) to green (ENC on).
It does also come with this random voice modulation feature. Built in there is a voice changer for three different modes (deep male voice, high pitched female voice and your native voice),
For me this totally useless, but it's there if you want and it's switchable via double-click on receiver.
Small and discrete
Finally, a microphone company that makes a small and discrete mic. It's little, it's black, it does not have any big branding like DJI does on all their gear.
As it has clip on the back, if you want you could clip it to a black pencil, or a black piece of metal or whatever to create a simple little microphone.
...or you could just clip it your shirt and record that way.
It's tiny and black so it's not too distracting when on camera.
Great price point
For the quality of the audio that you get for this price point, it's tough to beat.
The Boya mini comes in three pricing tiers depending on what you need:
Lighting - Have an older iPhone like I do with the iPhone Mini? The you'll need a Lighting connector.
Type C - The updated connector for iPad, iPhone and your laptop.
Lighting and Type C - I need both because I use this mic with my laptop, iPad and iPhone. My Laptop and iPad are Type C, but the iPhone Mini still uses the older Lighting connector.
Fits on my cheap $10 microphone surprisingly well
Random, but this is hilarious to me. The little clip on the mic attaches perfectly to my cheap iPhone grip/tripod.
Get my iPhone grip here - much better than hand holding the iPhone.
As I mentioned, the audio sounds best when the mic is in front of you, not when it's attached to your shirt.
So this little setup works really to produce quality audio for a walk and talk video that's finally better than my Sony X3000.
Pairs with your laptop - perfect for video editing with Descript
As a guy who makes video content regularly, the Boya Mini plugs right into my Dell XPS and pairs without issue.
The audio is not as good as my professional mic, the Shure MV7. But it's close, and when I use Descript to edit videos, it's pretty much perfect.
That's because Descript as an audio feature enhancement built in, so when I want to do a video with picture in picture, I don't want my big Shure Mic to be in the frame.
This handy little wireless mic comes in for the win.
Any cons?
There are a handful of cons so let me get to it.
Noise cancelling is good, but makes the audio worse
Noise cancelling makes the audio sound a bit warped and off. It's useful if you're in a legit loud place, but for 98% of situations you'll be fine using the standard audio profile.
Best option for the iPhone, not a mirrorless camera
Hands down, this is the mic to get if you're using iPhone or you're going to be editing video content with Descript.
Otherwise, if you're in the market for a wireless mic system for your mirrorless camera, I do think there are better options that product better sound.
This mic is small and light, so it pairs with a small light setup like my little tripod grip and my little iPhone Mini.
Boya Mini mic conclusion
Alright everyone, that's it for my quick breakdown of the Boya Mini. I covered the tech specs, embedded a video to show what the audio quality is like in a noisy environment and gave you honest feedback on it from actually using the mic.
If you're using iPhone, get this mic. I know it's tough to figure out what to buy because most camera review bros have no idea how to review mics and cameras for real world use.
They always run into the quite forest for the vlogging test, and focus on features people don't care about. Like honestly, NO ONE vlogs from a forest guys.
Overall though, for the size, audio quality and price point, this little wireless mic system is tough to beat.
*I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.