HD Air Studio HALO Modular Gimbal Debuts – 15kg Payload, 360° Roll and Pan, Handheld-to-Remote Head

Gimbal News

by Nino LeitnerJuly 17^th, 2026

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HD Air Studio, the Lublin-based engineering house behind the Cyclo and Elit stabilized heads, has revealed HALO, a modular three-axis gimbal it describes as a handheld-first system with full remote-head capabilities. The design is rated to carry up to 15 kg / 33 lb, adds unlimited 360° roll and pan through integrated power and SDI slip rings, and is being aimed at cinema packages built around the ARRI ALEXA 35, ALEXA Mini LF, and Sony VENICE 2.

HALO enters a category that has seen surprisingly little turnover at the top end. The two-handle, high-payload gimbal segment has been defined for years by the DJI Ronin 2 and the Freefly MōVI XL, and HD Air Studio is positioning HALO as a direct alternative for operators who have been waiting for a fresh option in this bracket. According to the company, the system was designed and built in collaboration with professional camera operators, with the stated goal of preserving natural movement rather than ironing it out entirely. Those are manufacturer claims at this stage, and none of them has been independently tested.

A handheld system that wants to be a remote head too

The pitch here is flexibility of form factor. HD Air Studio lists a complete handheld configuration at approximately 6 kg / 13.2 lb and a head-only configuration at approximately 4 kg / 8.8 lb, which suggests the grips, batteries, and control hardware can be stripped away when the gimbal is flown as a remote head on a crane, car mount, or cable rig. That dual identity is the same logic that made the Ronin 2 a fixture on sets, and it is where HALO will have to prove itself against incumbents that already have deep accessory ecosystems.

Modularity is the headline word. The company says each axis can be configured independently, and it describes HALO as quick to set up and balance, an area where high-payload gimbals routinely eat into a shooting day. Balancing time is notoriously hard to judge from a spec sheet, so this is a claim worth reserving judgment on until the system is in operators’ hands.

Why the payload figure matters

The 15 kg / 33 lb rating is the number that positions HALO in the professional tier. For context, DJI’s own specifications rate the Ronin 2 to support an increased payload of approximately 30 lb (13.6 kg), so HD Air Studio is claiming a modest headroom advantage over the most common reference point in this class. Freefly’s MōVI XL, by contrast, is specified to a much higher 50 lb (22.67 kg) ceiling, so HALO is not chasing the very heaviest rigs but rather the broad middle-to-upper band where most digital cinema packages actually sit. That capacity is what allows the company to name the ARRI ALEXA 35, the ARRI ALEXA Mini LF, and the Sony VENICE 2 as target payloads, along with similar packages up to the 15 kg ceiling.

In practice, the ceiling is what counts once you add a matte box, prime or zoom, follow focus motors, a wireless video transmitter, and a top-mounted monitor. A cinema body that weighs a few kilograms bare can easily double once fully rigged, so the usable margin above a stripped camera is the figure operators will scrutinize when full specifications arrive.

Unlimited rotation through power and SDI slip rings

One of the more concrete technical details is the integrated power and SDI slip ring arrangement, which HD Air Studio says enables continuous 360° roll and pan without cable wrap. Slip rings are the mechanism that lets signal and power pass through a continuously rotating joint, and building both power and SDI paths into the axes removes the practical limit that tethered cabling imposes on repeated revolutions. It also echoes the approach HD Air Studio already uses in its stabilized monitor bracket and Cyclo heads, so this is established territory for the company rather than a first attempt.

For operators, the payoff is repeatable whip-pans, barrel rolls, and continuous rotating moves without stopping to unwind a harness, which is exactly the kind of shot a remote head is bought to deliver.

Control options, from touchscreen to wheels

HALO is designed to be driven several ways: a built-in touchscreen, a mobile app, a joystick, a motion controller, geared wheels, and third-party integrations. That range spans the solo-operator workflow familiar from systems like the DJI RS 5 all the way up to the two-person, wheels-based operation that high-end remote heads demand. The inclusion of wheel control and third-party integration is the clearest signal that HD Air Studio is chasing the professional remote-head user rather than the run-and-gun creator.

What the company has not yet detailed is the transmission side: range, latency, and radio system for remote operation are all unaddressed in the current materials, and those are decisive factors for anyone weighing HALO against a proven wireless remote-head package.

Who is behind HALO

HD Air Studio is not a newcomer. The company says it has been building stabilization systems for the film industry since 2009, describes itself as having spent 17 years on the market, and states it has delivered more than 1,000 gimbals and stabilized heads to users across 65 countries. Its current catalog includes the Cyclo Lite (rated to an 18 kg payload) and Cyclo 1 heads aimed at Steadicam operators, the Elit gyro head for broadcast and cinema cameras up to 20 kg / 44 lb, and a line of custom drone gimbals, all built in-house in Poland. That manufacturing base in the European Union is a selling point the company leans on, and it is a relevant one at a time when US access to Chinese-made drone gear faces political uncertainty.

The company’s background in aerial gimbals and gyro-stabilized heads gives it a credible engineering pedigree for a product like HALO, which sits at the intersection of the handheld gimbal and the traditional remote head. Whether that pedigree translates into a system that can unseat entrenched competitors is the open question, and it is one that only field testing and a shipping product will answer.

HALO is currently in active development, and HD Air Studio has not published a price or a shipping date. The company is running a sign-up list for technical updates and beta-program access rather than taking orders, and its store lists prices in EUR, USD, and PLN, so international pricing should follow once the system reaches market. Full specifications for weight, materials, motor torque, battery system, and transmission remain outstanding, and buyers evaluating HALO against established rivals will want those confirmed before committing. You can register interest and follow development on the official HALO product page.

Could a handmade European system finally give the aging Ronin 2 and heavyweight MōVI XL some genuine competition in the cinema payload class? Don’t hesitate to let us know in the comments below!