In this video I unbox and do a first look at the RØDE VideoMicro II, a battery-free on-camera mic that’s made for small cameras like the Canon M50 and Canon G7X. I show everything that comes in the box (two 3.5mm cables, a foam cover, and the big fluffy dead cat), and I walk through the mic’s Helix-style shock mount design that’s meant to cut down handling noise. I also point out the pickup pattern: it’s omni from the front and sides, with nothing on the back, so where you stand and how you aim it matters. After the overview, I do real audio tests outside in calm conditions and then in heavy wind so you can hear the difference with and without the wind protection. From about 3 feet away the audio is crisp and clean, and even out around 20 feet it’s still usable, but talking from behind the camera definitely drops the volume and clarity. On my Canon M50 I had to bring the audio gain down to about a quarter to avoid clipping because this mic has plenty of output. After about three weeks of filming several videos, it’s been flawless for me—and I’ve basically left the dead cat on full-time so I don’t have to worry about wind noise.