Customer Ratings & Reviews

The Rode VideoMicro Universal Vlogger kit is an easy-to-assemble, compact set of accessories that lets you quickly improve the audio quality and lighting captured by your mobile devices without adding a lot of weight to your setup, only about 1 lb. I opted to go with the universal kit, rather than a hardware specific kit like the USB-C or iOS device kits since it offered the widest range of device compatibility, as I film both with my phone and a digital camera. The video/audio quality recorded on my phone is already pretty good, but even so, using the Rode VideoMicro mic made a positive difference in the quality of the audio capture since it has a directional polar pickup pattern. I like that the kit included a number of accessories, including a Rycote Lyre shockmount, WS9 deadcat wind screen muff, SC7 Audio cable, smartphone grip, tripod mount, dual-accessory cold shoe mount, microLED on-camera light, and diffuser for the light with 8 colored filters: white, red, red-orange, orange, yellow, green, green-blue, and blue. In this is a universal kit, the back of the mic features a 1/8” AUX output jack that you attach to the audio cable (TRS to TRRS type) to connect the mic to a mobile device’s headphone jack. You can also connect the mic to any recording device with a 1/8” stereo mic input jack, like a digital camera, but you’ll need a different cable (TRS to TRS) which is not included. What’s nice about this configuration is that the mic doesn’t have to plug directly into your phone’s charging port and is, instead, mounted on the shockmount and secured to a cold shoe which gives you more flexibility for placement and controlling the direction of the mic. One thing I noticed, though, about the Lyre shockmount is that the mic tends to tilt slightly off the horizontal plane; sliding its position in the shockmount can help you balance it so that it remains level. The included phone grip is made from a durable aluminum, and the width of the spring-loaded arms is adjustable up to 3.5” using the thumbscrew on top. I found that this is just large enough to fit my phone in without a case on, which wouldn’t work anyway, since my case prevented the AUX cable’s connector from being plugged in all the way. While it takes a while to fully loosen the grip for larger phones, the grip is firm once tightened down, and you don’t have to worry about your phone slipping out. The grip can then be attached in landscape or portrait orientation, using one of the three ¼”-20 thread mounting points, to any standard tripod. The included tabletop tripod measures about 8 inches long and is constructed mostly of a dense plastic, but manages to be fairly lightweight at 6.5 ounces. The ball head on it is detachable by simply unscrewing it from the tripod legs. This would also allow you to add an extension column if you needed more height. The tripod itself has two different height settings when open. The lower setting sits about 4.5” high, and there are rubber feet at the ends of the legs to aid stability on a flat surface. The higher setting has a sharper leg angle, giving you a height of about 6” from the surface the tripod is sitting on. Note that it’s slightly less stable at this height, so be aware of this tip-over hazard if you’re recording outside on a windy day. If you need to record in portrait mode, you can pivot the ball head into a vertical position, but this can make it side heavy and fall over, so make sure you’ve got the tripod on the lower height setting or are using the tripod handheld for stability. For better balance in portrait mode, attach the phone grip to the gimbal using one of the side mounting points. Keep in mind, in this orientation, the LED would be off the side and may not result in the best lighting. When using the tripod handheld at arm’s length, the Rode mic zeroed in on my voice and rejected ambient sounds coming from the sides and back of the mic, which in a large empty room, cut out a ton of background noise, echo, and even compression distortion. Even from a greater distance of 6 feet outdoors, the mic performed well at picking up my voice, and the dual layered fur wind screen helped cut down on wind noise to keep it at a minimum. I did use the mic with my digital camera, as well, using a TRS-TRS AUX cable. While the sound was improved and was much more focused on the subject versus the omnidirectional on-board mic on the camera, there was still some audible background hiss, since the mic signal is boosted by the camera’s internal pre-amp, but that doesn’t always produce the cleanest audio signal. The 1-3/8” microLED cube is also a useful addition to this kit. The LED charges via USB-C and has a 1 to 4 hours run-time depending on which of the four brightness levels is used. The colored filters slip into the front of the diffuser which clips over the LED. While the tabs on the filter sheets are short, I found that they stayed put once properly installed in the diffuser, and they can help color correct or add an interesting tint to your scene, based on your shooting conditions. The LED is really bright though and can be blinding at close proximity to a subject, so use of a filter is recommended; a white neutral diffuser filter is included. Overall, I think the mic does a great job focusing on sounds that it is pointed towards while reducing the amount of noise entering the mic from other directions and especially wind noise when using the wind screen muff. However, I found that the dual accessory bracket wasn’t quite wide enough to accommodate both the muff and the LED, since part of the light cast by the LED was blocked by the muff, casting a shadow on that side of the video. I appreciate that the kit works with any device that has an audio jack like smartphones and cameras and could even be used with an iOS device if connected to a Lightning to audio jack adapter; so keep that in mind if you’re trying to decide whether or not to get the universal kit versus the iOS-only version. It’s compact, lightweight, and performed well with various mobile devices.

The Rode Universal Vlogger Kit is compact and great to have on-the-go. Every piece and accessory is made of quality materials. Overall, Rode lives up to its household name. The main thing Rode is bringing to this kit is the VideoMicro microphone, which is definitely a step up from my Samsung S9’s internal mic. The windshield attachment works well outdoors but most of my use case is indoors. The great thing about having the VideoMicro is that the 3.5mm to 3.5mm cable can fit into my Sony camera too! And if I ever upgrade my phone, I believe I can just use a USB-C to 3.5mm adapter given that newer phones don’t have an audio jack (although Rode does offer a USB-C version of this Vlogger Kit if you prefer that connection.) The tripod is versatile in that it has a couple of height options as well as a removable ball head. The ball head knob is strong and doesn’t budge once it’s tightened. Everything other than the tripod and Rycote Lyre shock mount is aluminum-built which makes for a quality feel. The phone clamp is not spring loaded, it uses a screw to secure the phone which may take a few more seconds to load but in my opinion, the stability and security of the clamp outweighs the time difference of using a spring loaded clamp. The clamp also has multiple mounting points on the bottom and sides. The LED light can actually get quite bright. If the light is facing me at arms length, I definitely have to use it on the lowest setting with the included diffuser. I can see me using the light and colored gel filters for a back light on a different set, but I didn’t have any uses for the colored gels while vlogging and testing this setup. While all the pieces are meant to work together, I love that I could potentially use them separately or with other setups/rigs. This is a very versatile kit, especially for a beginner. I have no complaints and can definitely recommend this kit for anyone who is looking for a compact, sturdy handheld or table-top setup for phones or DSLR/mirrorless cameras with upgraded audio.

This is a pretty nice kit of parts if you don’t already have them. The microphone and LED light are definitely the stars of the show, but the tripod is also very good. I opted for the universal kit to give me more flexibility over where I can use the microphone. The microphone is a huge improvement over the built-in mic on my Pixel 4. My voice came through much more clearly against the background. The included dead cat does a good job of blocking out wind noise, though it definitely adds further to the bulk of the entire kit. I had also planned to use it with my mirrorless camera as well, but it appears to require a different cable. I was able to connect the cable, but no audio came through. The MicroLED is easy to operate and gets very bright. I left it on at the highest brightness and it turned off after just over 50 minutes and that lines up with the quoted battery life of 52 minutes. It did get quite hot over that period of time, but I don’t envision many scenarios where I’d need to have it on all the time at full brightness so I don’t think it’s a big problem. There are some included color filters, as well as as white diffuser, that attach via a bracket and they work well. I think you’d at least want the white diffuser on the light most of the time especially when lighting your face to cut down on the harshness. It charges via USB-C, which is always appreciated on small accessories like this as it’s one less charging cable to keep track of. The phone bracket fit my Pixel 4XL without any issues and I think you could get most any phone in there within reason. I did notice that if you unscrew it too far the springs could fall out, so that’s something to watch out for. There’s a slot at the top of the bracket to attach the dual cold shoe mount. I did notice that it was a little harder to attach the microphone on its own as the larger handscrew does interfere with the screw that clamps your phone, but it can be done. Not too much to say about the mini tripod. I’d say it’s solid and it’s easy to hold. There’s also an adjustment dial that locks the legs to 2 separate positions. With everything assembled the overall size is very manageable and I’m pretty happy with this kit. It does feel like a beginner kit, but it’s a solid set of items.

Rode is a popular brand for external microphone. Most of content creators that I know of have been using Rode microphones for ages. The universal kit is a one stop solution to transform your smart phone into a video rig. It’s clear that Rode has given serious thoughts about this kit. All of the items included in the kit is useful. The grip can transform to a small tripod. The cold shoe mount can nicely be attached to your phone and even better you can use the mount to attach the microphone to your mirrorless DSLR. However, you will need to supply TRS mini jack cable on your own if you want to use the mic with your mirrorless DSLR as the kit comes with TRSS mini jack cable for smartphones. The light is very useful when lighting conditions are not good enough. The microphone is connected through audio input cable so not all phones will work with the kit, at least not without some kind of audio input adaptor, so be sure to check if your smartphone have the required audio input jack before getting this kit. There are several kit models from Rode including the ones specifically made for iPhone and USB-C android phones but the universal kit in my opinion is the one to have because of the versatility of using the cold shoe mount and audio input cable. Also, the cold shoe mount ensures that the position of the microphone sits on top of your smartphone/ camera instead of on the side if you are using an Apple’s lightning or USB-C microphone. This may be just a matter of preference but having both the microphone and the camera light sit on top of your device would enable to direct the attention of your subject better to the center of your rig; after all external microphone is usually positioned on top of the camera. Although smartphone these days are good enough to isolate some ambient noise when you do outdoor Vlogging, Rode microphone generally still holds superiority in picking up the subject’s voice thus make it clearer and more audible. The microphone can only record mono sound so it will not record stereo sound, which is expected of a shotgun style mic. The important thing here is that the mic should get the job done and generally perform better than the smartphone’s built-in mic. If you are using an expensive video rig such as DSLR then of course you should consider using a more rich-featured and superior microphone that costs much much more, even though the quality of audio provided by the kit microphone would still be better than that of your camera built-in mic. The kit comes with a windshield cover so your microphone would be well protected from wind noise. The included light comes with diffuser kit, which makes content creating more fun to experiment with different colors of ambient light. The included light is very bright and useful. This is the kit to get to transform your smartphones into a very capable Vlogging rig. Not only that, with proper audio cable or adapter, you can use this kit with your mirrorless DSLR (as a compact external mic) and action cams. No need to take guessing mix and match of Vlogging rig, this kit should serve you well to start vlogging or creating content with better audio and lighting.

It’s been an amazing product more than expect is super easy to handle and the microphone is another level I recommend 100 % if you’re expecting something easy to use and no that big this is gonna be the perfect product to you

This kit from RØDE is a great way to pick up a bunch of tools for video in one shot. Everything is useful, works great, and coming from RØDE, it is all quality. You get a long list of tools including a directional mic, mic mount, dead cat filter, phone grip, tripod, LED light, diffuser (with 8 filters), and a nice dual cold shoe mount. Honestly, you really do not need much else of anything. In use, everything is very compact, fits well together, and works very well. I like the quality of the mic; it picks up a lot and what it does is crisp and clear. A clear upgrade over the phone mic. The phone grip works and should fit just about every phone without issue. I really like the tripod. You can get a couple of different positions and can also use it as a hand grip. The light is also great. It has solid output, is rated for an hour of use, and it is a lot of fun to play with the diffuser and filters. The mounts work perfectly, and really, they kind of are the key that pulls everything together. Lastly, it is nice to get all the needed cables included. I need to add, while all of this is meant for use with the phone, there is added versatility here as you can also use quite a bit of this kit with a camera as well. Just something to note for those who also have cameras. Not a bad value add. In the end, I really like this kit. It is a nice set of quality tools all in one package and a great value.

This is a nice all-in-one kit for the beginner. I've only used it a few times, and I love the ease of use. I haven't really had a need for many of the accessories, so I cannot comment beyond the basic tripod setup. It's does feel a little pricey, but that may be due to the inclusion of the accessories I don't use.

This is a fun, starter vlogging kit. It is not easy to put together. There are drawings (no written instructions). It’s also not “universal.” We got almost all the way done setting it up and then realized that the microphone requires a headphone jack, which newer iPhones don’t have. We were able to resolve the issue with a $9 lightning cable, but it was a bummer not to be able to use the kit right away on Christmas.

Excellent vlog, youtube, tiktok, or any socialmedia starter pack. Easy to use and great built in material (metal)

One of the best units to stop your content with planning to purchase another next month to use on my trip.

This mic is awesome, and does what is supposed to do, great to record outdoors.

Most of the things I record are recorded through my computer with a good quality microphone attached. I record game play and other things on the computer but I quickly found out if I wanted better picture quality of segments that included video of my face that recording on my phone was the way to go. But my phone has a pretty terrible microphone so I always had to do this hybrid setup of recording the audio on my computer while recording the video on my phone and splicing it together later and trying to get it as in sync as I could. Enter this setup! With a nice little tripod and all the attachments you might need record a great looking face cam AND get good audio with the included microphone. It's so much nicer than my makeshift setup. Setup took a minute to figure out what everything did and how it all connected but it become obvious pretty quickly. There's a nice set of instructions that sort of guides you through putting everything together and once you understand what everything is and how it connects it's easy enough to just slide your phone out of the mount without really disconnecting anything else so it's always ready to go. Video and audio quality were quite nice. The audio was a lot better than just relying on my phone's built in microphone and the video is made even better with the wireless LED light. It's very bright and has a handful of filters so you can change the color of the light if you want or just soften it with the frosted white filter. Charges via USB-C as well so easy to do whenever it needs it. I don't think there's much else to say about this. If you want to take your face cam filming to a higher level than just recording on your phone, this kit has everything you need to make things look and sound better with very little extra effort.

I have been trying to get into filming my daily events, but could not quite get all the items to hold together. That was until I saw this gem being offered. Well let me tell you, I was excited to try out all the cool things that came in the box Needless to say, I look like I am about to make the next blockbuster with this thing. So after a few days of use I have some thoughts: Handle is sturdy and easy to grip. But, it does not extend at all. Mic is nice and captures great audio, But ,the dead cat weights it down and makes it droop in the shock mount (so it bounces more). Light is bright and does work well, But the lowest setting is still blinding and there is no way to keep the setting when you turn it off and one. You must step though the brightness until you get back to the one you want. The phone grip is very sturdy and I do not fear my phone getting loose. But, you have to screw it up and down, which makes it not very quick to get out or switch phones. Also if you do not "crank" it down, it will rattle each time you move the handle. However, even with these minor things, I am so looking forward to my trip to Mexico and giving this a full test drive. I have not doubts this will be the answer to my vlogging dreams and beyond.

What I like about this kit--- it is a real kit. It's everything you need to start vlogging. It is complete with what you need to equip yourself with a mini studio or even just to support you to be able to create cool videos. Even if you are not a vlogger yet or not even a vlogger at all, it helps to have one in these times of creating reels. Everything is so simple, I do not even have to read the instructions. The dials and hinges on this kit are easy to navigate. These include placing my phone in the brackets, sliding the flash in place, plugging the mic in and setting the tripod. The tripod turns into a mobile handle, the hinges can be positioned depending on my creative angle, and even the flash can be set on its different levels and it comes with color filters too. Even the audio captures I think are a better than my phone mic. Two concerns though-- 1) Having a newer phone, I need a USB-C to 3.5mm adapter to attach the microphone. Not a big deal because I already have one. 2) The deadcat for the mic cannot be positioned well enough for it not to not block light from the light kit; so it's just something to consider when lighting yourself. Of course my actual finished videos is based on so many factors like my phone quality (pixel 3) or my actual creative eye (im not an expert). But having this kit helps a lot in producing my videos.

If you’re looking for a complete package of everything you need to turn your smartphone into a GREAT vlogging/filmmaking rig, this is it. The included high-quality microphone and LED light can increase your production quality significantly. I am pretty blown away at what you get in this kit as well as the quality of everything included. // The Microphone Included is a Rode VideoMicro on-camera microphone. I’ve been using this particular mic for years with my larger cameras for on-camera audio and the quality you get out of this microphone is great. It comes with a shock/suspension mount which helps with eliminating vibrations and the quality is top-notch. // The Light This kit also comes with a small LED light but don’t let the size fool you. This thing is bright! It has 4 brightness levels so you can adjust the level based on your needs but probably the neatest thing about this light is that it comes with a filter kit that allows you to diffuse the light with a white filter but it also comes with a rainbow of colored filters so you can get creative with your lighting. The filters just pop into place with a convenient cover that snaps on the front of the light and you’re good to go. // The Smartphone Mount This is by far THE highest quality smartphone mount I have ever seen. The entire thing is made out of metal and I can’t imagine anyone ever breaking one of these. The clamps have a rubber coating on them which grip your phone securely while not damaging your phone and it holds your phone in place using a little screw dial which adjusts the tension. There is little possibility of your phone accidentally falling out of this mount. // The Tripod/Grip Even the last 3 items are pretty much worth the cost of this kit but they also include this very good, multi-purpose camera tripod/camera grip. First, you can use it as a tripod and it has two different positions: a low mode which has the legs spread far out for stability and then a taller position depending on your needs. You can adjust the angle of the camera with a screw dial and you can even point your camera straight up if you’d like. You’ll attach the microphone and light to the included dual-cold shoe mount, attach that to the smartphone mount, mount it on the tripod, plug in the mic, and you’re off and filming. The nice thing about this kit is that you can use all these components separately with other devices and not just your phone. The microphone is a high-quality microphone that many beginning and intermediate filmmakers use, the LED light can be used off camera to add some ambient lighting effects, and the tripod/grip has a standard 1/4-20 screw that can attach to any camera. Really can’t say enough about what you get for the money here. Well worth it!

This is a great setup for vloggers. The mic is a huge step up from both the Canon G7X Mark III internal audio as well as the Sony ZV-1 internal audio. It does still capture quite a bit of white noise but is more easily removed in pp than internal audio. The mic is on the larger side but worth it for the deadcat’s capabilities in windy areas. The tripod is good quality, although I wish it was able to convert to be able to hold a point and shoot while keeping the ball head. It’s large enough to accommodate my iPhone 11+ as well as a pop socket which is a huge bonus! The light works fine, but doesn’t have a lot of practical application for the kind of videos I make. Still a great all-around choice!