I bought a Samsung Galaxy J3 to replace my ZTE Maxxpro. I had researched very carefully the choices in phones, and was set on the Samsung. Keep in mind I’m not a tech guy.
I also researched a simple home studio for under $75. I purchased it – lights, stands, Amazon Basics tripod, Boya microphone, and camera mount.
My first snag was of course the Tracphone system. Tracphone uses an IMEI code on a SIM card with the Tracphone system on it. My phone was delivered with the chip already installed. Now I couldn’t upgrade the memory of the phone. The Tracphone chip was in its place.
Or so I thought. More on that in a minute.
So, next I plugged in the microphone. I thought it worked. So I filmed some karate, and replayed it.
You couldn’t hear the microphone.
Huh.
I ordered another microphone. Still nothing.
I searched every YouTube video on the Samsung microphone issue, and its resolution. The answers came immediately, in fluent Hindi.
Well, I don’t speak Hindi. Not a word of it. That will surprise most people who know me, since I know phrases in several different languages.
In vain, I was about to order a patch cable form one of the three videos in English on how to fix this.
Then I ran into some odd videos about the Galaxy J3. It seems that the spot for the SD micro card is… right over the IMEI chip! You just plug it in the socket over the IMEI chip, and you now have 20 gigs or more of storage.
I took off the case. Opened the back. Yes! It’s right! That’s solved!
I put the phone back together, but didn’t put the rubber frame on it. Keep researching.
Another one showed permissions. I’d already done that.
Another showed how to turn up the volume of the microphone.
Huh.
I plugged the microphone back in.
Guess what. It worked.
Now, here’s the trick. If you have a rubber case to protect your phone, TAKE IT OFF before plugging in the Boya microphone!!! The case actually keeps it from plugging in all the way.
Once I did that, the microphone worked like a CHAMP.
I use the Boya BY-M1 Lav microphone. You can use any microphone, but make sure that the plug has THREE black stripes on it. That makes it the TRRS plug, not a TRS plug. The third black stripe tells the phone, “This is not a headphone.”
Worked like a champ. So, you too can buy a working video studio for less than $70!
And yes, you can buy a tracphone Samsung Galaxy J3 Orbit, and add a micro SD card!
Disclaimer: I do not receive any compensation for mentioning these products. I mention them because they worked well for me and fixed the problem
