What if a drone wasn't an annoying buzzing menace but a cute, jumping robot dog that films your tricks and gets back up after crashing into walls? That's the pitch from Shenzhen-based Mondo Robotics, which today launched a Kickstarter for Beni, a two-legged robot dog that follows you around, jumps up to 10 inches, runs at nearly 18 mph, and lasts up to 1.5 hours on a charge while shooting 4K30 HDR video.

For roughly $600 on Kickstarter or $800 retail, Beni promises to be your robotic videographer, pet, and crash-test dummy. The Verge's Sean O'Kane took it for a spin and was genuinely charmed, despite some early hiccups. The bot's dual 150-degree obstacle avoidance cameras and UWB wrist tracker weren't enough to stop it from clipping corners, smacking walls, or running into his foot while he was on a kick scooter. It did better when he just walked around downtown Oakland.

But O'Kane was floored by its stability and durability. Beni followed him down multiple flights of stairs, and when he repeatedly ran it into walls and off ledges, it always bounced back with no more than a deep scuff. The secret is in the legs: motors in the shoulders fling the lower legs downward, while spring-filled cylindrical joints absorb shock. Even when it falls, it rotates its legs to get its wheeled feet back under its body.

Beni has personality, too. You can pet its head, and it'll jump, shake, or coo at you while flashing light from its Wall-E-esque binocular eyes. It can look with its head before turning its body, making it seem alive. There's a setting to rotate its head fully backward to film you from the front.

Around back, it has a 31 Wh swappable battery, a microSD slot (on top of 32GB built-in), and a USB-C port. The movable orange ears have 1/4-inch tripod threads for accessories. There are also electrical contacts for future upgrades like a treat-tosser or a charging dock. Mondo plans a 4G dongle for remote driving in China and will release 3D printer files for camera mounts and body armor.

In the app, power users can adjust ride height, camera pitch, stabilization, speed, and joystick curves. It works with third-party controllers too; Mondo's creative director showed off a Logitech G29 racing wheel rigged up for FPV control.

It's a Kickstarter from a relatively unknown startup, so usual caveats apply. But Mondo says it'll ship this fall. O'Kane's verdict: even if the follow-me feature isn't perfect, it's a self-balancing, self-righting, jumping R/C toy with a 4K camera that his kids will want to pet. If there isn't a fatal flaw by production, it's going on his Christmas wishlist.