Three years ago, Belkin introduced a motorized phone stand that swivels around to keep your face centered in the frame during FaceTime calls. It’s incredibly useful, especially if you’re the sort who likes to move around during video calls. At its 2023 Worldwide Developers Conference last year, though, Apple introduced DockKit, a new iPhone feature that allows the device to track the location of objects during video recording. That’s why, for Belkin’s new Auto-Tracking Stand Pro with DockKit, they decided to take advantage of this auto-follow capability.
Like their original face tracking stand, the device mounts your iPhone using the MagSafe connection, then automatically swivels to follow the subject to keep them in the center of the frame during FaceTime calls. In this iteration, though, it can also perform tilting movements and work with nearly all apps that use the camera, while tracking the face, body, and even objects, making for an even more powerful accessory.
The Belkin Auto-Tracking Stand Pro with DockKit puts a magnetic dock on an arm that’s mounted to a wide and thick base that should ensure it stays upright even while the phone on top moves around into different positions. To use, simply pair it with your MagSafe iPhone (it has NFC for one-tap pairing), place the phone on the dock, and press the button to activate the automatic tracking function, then launch whatever app you want to use for video calls or video recording. Since it uses the iPhone’s built-in subject tracking capability, it should work with all apps that have been updated to support that function, including FaceTime, Teams, WhatsApp, Instagram, and TikTok, among others.
The magnetic mount on the stand doesn’t cover the iPhone’s rear camera, by the way, so it will retain the auto-tracking capabilities whether you film with the front or rear cameras. Pressing the sole button on the device, by the way, instantly activates and deactivates tracking, so you can quickly enable and disable the feature as you see fit.
The Belkin Auto-Tracking Stand Pro with DockKit can swivel a full 360 degrees, allowing it to follow and keep you in the center of the frame even while you walk around the iPhone’s location, all while tilting up to 90 degrees, so it will maintain your place in the frame even when you sit or stand. According to the outfit, it uses quiet motors, so there’s minimal sound produced during the movements, while a threaded mount at the base lets you place it on top of a tripod, in case you want to position it at a higher angle.
An onboard battery can keep the device running for up to five hours of video recording, although you can also plug it in for longer recording sessions. When plugged in, by the way, the dock also serves as a wireless charger that supports both MagSafe and Qi2, so you get to recharge your phone with 15W of power delivery.
The Belkin Auto-Tracking Stand Pro with DockKit is now listed on the outfit’s website for $179.99. It should come out later in the year.
