Blue shrinks down its most popular mic for the $99 Yeti Nano

Blue is about to become a part of the much larger Logitech. For now, however, the company is going to keep focusing on what it does best: creating low-cost USB microphones for novice podcasters. This week, the California company just added another model to the line.

Yeti Nano shrinks the form factor of Blue’s most popular line into something for more economically accessible. At $99, the new microphone slots in between the Snowball ($49/$69) and the new and even smaller Raspberry ($199).

The price is certainly right on the new microphone. And the design language is great — it really does look exactly like a scale model of the Yeti. There’s a headphone input, so you can hear yourself in real-time and a swiveling stand to position it as you see fit. There are also buttons to toggle between pickup patterns so you can switch between single or omnidirection modes, in situations where you’re going for more of a room tone.

Blue sent me a microphone to try out, and honestly, I have to say I’m pretty disappointed with the thing. The sound quality is tinny and generally lacking, compared to other models I’ve used, including the smaller Blue Raspberry.I’d recommend going with the tried and true Snowball, if you don’t mind a larger model. If portability is the main thing, the Raspberry’s a solid enough selection for sticking in a backpack.

The Shadow Grey model is available now from various retailers. Vivid Blue, Red Onyx and Cubano Gold models are coming soon.