The China-only Honor Robot Phone fits the description but, at the same time, holds the promise of smartphones going beyond slabs.
Only a tap in the camera app makes the gimbal raise its head and body to appear like a little robot on top of the phone.
Picture: HonorAs a phone, there is a bright display, the latest flagship chipset and a large battery to keep the phone ticking along.
Honor's partnership with ARRI is a good move when it comes to establishing the Robot Phone as a filmmaking device.
The Honor Robot Phone will be available in two configurations, 12GB+512GB and 16GB+1TB, priced at RMB 9,999 and RMB 12,999 respectively.
Many innovations start with something akin to a gimmick. The China-only Honor Robot Phone fits the description but, at the same time, holds the promise of smartphones going beyond slabs. To call the pop-out gimbal camera outlandish is not far-fetched as concept devices come and go, but certain aspects of the phone hold the promise of practical tech.
When the camera is not made to pop out, this is another ordinary looking phone from the front. Only a tap in the camera app makes the gimbal raise its head and body to appear like a little robot on top of the phone. Before that, slide away a protective cover on the back.
There are a few tech chops featured on the phone that we may see across other devices in the coming months. One is rocksteady footage, no matter how much you shake the phone, as if the robotic gimbal is the real thing. Footage is corrected for vertical and horizontal movement using a micro motor, which is much smaller than what you get inside a conventional gimbal.
Picture: Honor
As a phone, there is a bright display, the latest flagship chipset and a large battery to keep the phone ticking along.
And then there are a few special controls. An on-screen joystick allows the user to drag the camera in any direction while the body stays still, with a slider governing how quickly the head responds.
Like on a gimbal, there are some cinematic presets content creators can take advantage of, such as a rotational spin across 90 degrees; choosing 180 degrees will make the camera snap upwards to the sky before rotating slowly through the arc.
There's more. Tilt Lock pins the horizon, so rotating the handset makes the gimbal counter-rotate and the frame stays upright. A similar technology has been seen on the latest Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra. FPV Mode holds the head fixed and looking forward, while FPV Vertical does the same thing pointed at the ground.
Taking the power of the mini gimbal further is the tracking technology. Double-tapping a person or object sets the camera following. It is particularly helpful while shooting moving objects or even while conducting a video call. The head sweep function takes the gimbal through 310 degrees, which covers almost everything from the rear view round to the front.
Besides the main 200MP unit, there is a 50MP front camera, a 50MP ultra-wide and a 200MP telephoto. The powerful camera system can capture four frames on its own and then fuse them, front or rear, producing group selfies wider than most handsets can manage. A mega-wide option grabs a grid of nine shots for a field of view exceeding the ultra-wide lens.
Picture: Honor
There is a full cinema camera suite too, including ungraded log capture, false colour for spotting blown highlights, focus peaking, and a golden ratio composition guide that maintains framing regardless of how the phone moves.
Honor's partnership with ARRI is a good move when it comes to establishing the Robot Phone as a filmmaking device. ARRI footage is often used as a benchmark for quality in video circles.
But one has to remember that the gimbal is a mechanical unit. If the user drops the phone and the gimbal gets misaligned, a visit to the service centre would be required. Also, it takes time for the special camera to swing into action, and even a one second delay can result in a missed shot. Overall, the durability of the moving unit is questionable in the long run if one is not careful with the phone. For now, the phone is on sale only in China.
Another niggling issue could be battery life. The gimbal-robot is charged by the phone. If the phone is for creators, expect them to use the camera for long hours, and that means a slight difference to battery life.
Having said that, this is one of those devices that has immense potential in Asia while the US and western Europe largely continue to play it safe when it comes to innovations on the smartphone.
The Honor Robot Phone will be available in two configurations, 12GB+512GB and 16GB+1TB, priced at RMB 9,999 and RMB 12,999 respectively. Pre-orders have started in China, with official sales starting on August 18. There is no word on a global release.
