vivo Enters the Gimbal Camera Arena
According to a report from Leiphone (雷锋网), vivo is developing its first handheld gimbal camera, tentatively named "vivo Pocket", set for release in Q4 2026. Mass production is expected to start in October, with a launch window of November to December.
Key Details
The Chinese Gimbal Camera Race
vivo is far from alone. According to the report:
Industry sources suggest vivo originally planned a Q3 2026 launch but pushed it back to Q4 to observe competitor products first.
Market Context
The handheld smart camera market is currently dominated by DJI with a 62% share (~10.4 million units in 2025), followed by Insta360 at 12% (~3.4 million), and GoPro at 8%. The entry of multiple Chinese smartphone giants signals growing confidence in this category.
Why It Matters
This move represents Chinese smartphone makers' strategy to diversify beyond saturated phone markets into adjacent consumer electronics categories — a trend that could reshape the global action camera and vlogging equipment landscape.
