This $800 robotic dog camera brought me pure joy.
Imagine a drone that’s not just another buzzing annoyance but a playful robot dog that runs and jumps. What if it could perform tricks on command while capturing your own stunts on video? And what if it could bounce back after a rough crash, time and time again?
When I first spotted Beni on social media, I thought it was just another AI gimmick. Surely, consumer robots couldn’t be this agile and smart in 2026, right? But after taking the real deal for a test drive, I realized Beni does have some room for improvement. However, my two-hour demo was such a blast that I found myself wanting one for my own collection.
Currently available for around $600 on Kickstarter or $800 at retail, Beni is a two-legged robot dog from Shenzhen-based Mondo Robotics that can automatically follow you or your pet. It boasts impressive specs, claiming speeds of nearly 18 miles per hour, the ability to jump up to 10 inches, navigate stairs, and operate for up to 1.5 hours on a single charge while filming in super-stable 4K30 HDR (or 3K60, or 1080p100).
You can control Beni using virtual joysticks in the app or a physical controller that can be strapped to your wrist like a watch. Alternatively, you can set it to follow you, film from the side, or orbit around you like a drone.
I didn’t get to test all its features in one afternoon, and I have some skepticism about its automatic tracking capabilities, especially with a fall release date looming. During my demo, I had to manually activate its tracking modes, and while Beni is equipped with dual 150-degree obstacle avoidance cameras and a UWB wrist tracker, it still struggled with corners, walls, and even bumped into my foot while trying to keep pace with my kick scooter. It performed much better when I simply walked around downtown Oakland.
What truly impressed me was Beni’s stability and durability. It followed me down multiple flights of stairs, and even when I intentionally crashed it into walls and off ledges, it always bounced back with just a scuff. And yes, it can jump like it’s equipped with Speed Racer’s auto-jacks! It’s an absolute joy to use.
The secret lies in its legs. Motors in the shoulders propel the lower legs downward, while spring-filled joints absorb the impact. When Beni lands after a jump, it stays upright, and if it does topple, it quickly rights itself by rotating its legs to get its wheeled feet back under its body. You can see just how resilient Beni is in my embedded video!
Beni has enough personality to make you feel a bit guilty for slamming it into walls. You can pet its head, and it responds with jumps, shakes, or coos, all while its Wall-E-like eyes flash colorful lights.
Its ability to look around with its head before turning its body adds to the illusion of life. This design choice allows Mondo to get away with just two forward-facing obstacle avoidance sensors when filming from the side. There’s even an app setting that lets Beni rotate its head fully backward to film you from the front, though I didn’t have time to test that feature.
On the back, Beni houses a 31 watt-hour swappable battery with a built-in power button, a microSD slot for expanding its 32GB of internal storage, and a hidden USB-C port for charging and data transfer. The movable orange ears aren’t just for looks; they can be adjusted to give Beni different expressions, and you can unscrew the nubs underneath to reveal 1/4-inch tripod threads for attaching standard photo and video accessories. You can also easily swap the outdoor wheels for indoor ones, although the basic kit only includes one set.
Mondo has also included two sets of electrical contacts for future upgrades, including four on top that could support a treat dispenser for pets and two on the bottom that might enable a docking and charging station. They plan to release a 4G dongle in China for remote control and will provide 3D printer files for additional camera mounts and protective gear.
The app seems to offer depth for power users as well. Mondo’s marketing director and creative director demonstrated how you can adjust Beni’s ride height, camera pitch, stabilization degree, and even the speed and turning curves.
While Mondo isn’t creating a dedicated twin-stick controller, they showed me how Beni can work with third-party controllers. I got to try a racing transmitter and a pair of Xreal glasses rigged to the app for FPV control. They mentioned it’s even more fun with a Logitech G29 racing wheel, which can connect to a phone and the app, provided you have a power source.
As a Kickstarter project from a relatively new startup, there are always risks involved: it might not ship, or it could get stuck in certification or customs delays. Although it’s not a flying drone, it comes from veterans of the industry, and the team is confident Beni will ship this fall.
After spending a couple of hours with Beni, my conclusion is clear: even if it doesn’t fully deliver on the follow-me promise as shown in the marketing videos, there aren’t many companies creating a self-balancing, self-righting, jumping R/C toy with a built-in 4K camera that kids will want to interact with. If it avoids any major flaws by the time it hits production, this one is definitely going on my Christmas wishlist.
