Honor Robot Phone sets Q3 launch with AI camera gimbal targeting creators and filmmakers

Honor's Influencer-Coded Robot Phone Set For Fall Launch in China

Katie is a UK-based news reporter and features writer. Officially, she is CNET's European correspondent, covering tech policy and Big Tech in the EU and UK. Unofficially, she serves as CNET's Taylor Swift correspondent. You can also find her writing about tech for good, ethics and human rights, the climate crisis, robots, travel and digital culture. She was once described a "living synth" by London's Evening Standard for having a microchip injected into her hand. When Chinese phone company Honor first teased its Robot Phone back at the end of last year, I wondered if the concept would ever see the light of day. But after interacting with an early version of the device at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona in March, I became convinced it was really going to happen. Now, it has a launch date -- well almost. Honor is set to launch the Robot Phone officially in Q3 this year in China, the company announced after taking the device on a night out at the Cannes Film Festival last week. As for Honor's Humanoid Robot, which also made its debut at MWC? It looks like that might not be quite ready for a full consumer launch just yet. When I saw the Robot Phone working at MWC, it struck me as being part of a trend in which we're starting to see less boring phones come to the fore. But even amid in a sea of novelty, there's nothing quite like this. At first glance, there might not seem anything unusual about the Robot Phone, but look again and you'll see that a sliding cover hides a robotic arm with a gimbal and a camera. To coax the camera out of its hiding place, you simply hold your palm up to the front-facing camera, turn that same hand around, and out it swings. Thanks to the gimbal, the camera is capable of stabilized tracking shots. In my short time playing with the phone, I also saw the robotic arm was capable of dancing in time with movement, and that the camera can work in tandem with AI software to look you up and down and assess your outfit (in my case the conclusion was favorable). But the real test for the Robot Phone still lies ahead. The clear target audience for the Robot Phone is the influencers and creators who currently use handheld action cams, such as the DJI Osmo Pocket. These devices are popular because they're small and versatile, while offering superb image quality. For Honor to dream of rivalling handheld cameras, it will need to ensure that it can at least match, if not exceed that quality. As announced at MWC, it has secret weapon in this department in the form of a partnership with ARRI, a company that's made high-end cinema cameras since 1917. "Today, consumer smartphones have already become a serious tool in professional filmmaking, being used on blockbusters across the globe," said David Bermbach, managing director at ARRI in a press release. "That's why we believe it is time to bring these worlds even closer together. For the first time ever, core elements of ARRI Image Science are being integrated directly into a consumer device." If Honor can bring the quality ARRI is known for to its well-regarded phones, as well as ensure the Robot Phone's mechanical features are truly durable, it could have a compelling product on its hands that encourages creators to toss their standalone cameras aside. Mark your calendars for fall -- this might just be one of the most unusual and exciting phone launches of the year.

Honor's Robot Phone aims to revolutionize mobile filmmaking, and it now has a release window that's just months away

* Honor's innovative Robot Phone now has a release window * It's set to launch in Q3 (July-September) of this year * It has also been shown off at Cannes to demonstrate its filmmaking capabilities Honor's Robot Phone last made an appearance at MWC 2026, but back then, it was seen as something of a concept device. Now, though, it has an official release window. Honor has announced that the Robot Phone will launch in Q3 of this year (likely in China first), so sometime between July and September, and alongside this announcement, the company has taken the phone to Cannes China Night, to show off its potential for filmmaking on a phone. Unlike a normal smartphone, the Honor Robot Phone has an AI-powered camera attached to a gimbal. The camera can stick out the top of the phone and rotate independently of the rest of the handset, so it could be a versatile filmmaking tool. Advanced tech and an Arri collaboration Honor is marketing the device as "the next evolution of mobile filmmaking and AI hardware innovation", with features like its "ultra-compact 4DoF gimbal system delivering robot-grade motion control" being shown off at Cannes, along with AI Object Tracking and AI SpinShot, which allow the camera to follow subjects and carry out fluid rotational movements. The company also took the opportunity to emphasize that "for the first time ever, core elements of Arri Image Science are being integrated directly into a consumer device". Arri, if you don't know, is a designer and manufacturer of professional camera technology that's been in business since 1917. So it sounds like the Honor Robot Phone could be a highly capable device when it comes to AI-backed filmmaking, but that also sounds like quite a niche proposition -- and given the design of this phone, it was always likely to be somewhat niche regardless. It will be interesting to see, then, whether it can also attract buyers who aren't interested in being the next Spielberg. We should find out in just a matter of months. Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button! And of course you can also follow TechRadar on TikTok for news, reviews, unboxings in video form, and get regular updates from us on WhatsApp too.

Honor Confirms Launch Timeline for Its Robot Phone

Honor Robot Phone was previewed at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in March this year. During the event, the company disclosed that the innovative smartphone will be launched later this year. Now, Honor has officially announced the launch timeline of the Honor Robot Phone. It has a different design compared to traditional smartphones, with a robotic gimbal camera module mounted on top. The camera functions like a dedicated handheld gimbal, and it can automatically rotate and track subjects while recording video. Honor Robot Phone Confirmed to Launch in Q3 2026 Honor CEO Li Jian announced during the Cannes Film Festival that the Honor Robot Phone will be launched in Q3 this year, which means between July and September. "We will pour a century of accumulated imaging science into this small mobile device, empowering Chinese cinema to reach the pinnacle of art with Chinese intelligent manufacturing, and jointly creating our own world glory" (translated from Chinese), Li Jian wrote in a Weibo post. The brand has also confirmed its association with ARRI for the handset. With a launch window in Q3, Honor Robot Phone is expected to compete directly with Apple's upcoming foldable phone, Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 8 and Galaxy Z Flip 8 and Google's Pixel 11 series, which are believed to hit markets around the same timeframe. The company first teased the Honor Robot Phone during the launch of Honor Magic 8 series last year. It was showcased during the MWC 2026 in Barcelona. The handset has a robotic gimbal camera mounted on top, which can rotate automatically to track subjects while recording videos. The Honor Robot Phone is advertised to offer industry-leading stabilisation performance on a smartphone. It features a three-axis mechanical gimbal stabilisation system with an AI-powered stabilisation engine to respond to movements in real time. It offers intelligent AI subject tracking. It can recognise subjects, anticipate movement, and respond quickly. It also offers a Spinshot mode, which lets users capture in either 90-degree or 180-degree modes, using one-handed controls.

HONOR previews Robot Phone at Cannes ahead of Q3 2026 launch

HONOR presented its upcoming Robot Phone during the China Night event at the 79th Cannes Film Festival. The company also announced that the new smartphone is scheduled for an official market release in the third quarter of this year. Serving as the official imaging partner for the China Night event, HONOR utilized the showcase to demonstrate the device's integrated artificial intelligence and imaging capabilities. The hardware is designed to offer complex, stabilized tracking shots in a compact smartphone format, providing professional-grade imaging tools to digital content creators and filmmakers. A notable aspect of the upcoming Robot Phone is its integration of technology resulting from a strategic collaboration between HONOR and ARRI, a prominent designer and manufacturer of professional cinematic camera equipment. During the China Night event, which operated under the theme "From Tradition to Tomorrow," attendees were able to interact with the Robot Phone and test its stabilization and tracking features. Key technical features highlighted at the event include: These integrated features are designed to simplify complex camera movements that traditionally require larger film crews and specialized mechanical equipment. David Bermbach, Managing Director at ARRI, said: Today, consumer smartphones have already become a serious tool in professional filmmaking, being used on blockbusters across the globe. That's why we believe it is time to bring these worlds even closer together. For the first time ever, core elements of ARRI Image Science are being integrated directly into a consumer device. Tina Jia, Chairwoman of the China Night, Cannes Film Festival, said: