• Unitree has shown off an impressive demo for its new 'kung fu' robot
• It's based on the company's H2 platform, and is designed for security
• It's unlikely to go on general sale, though, and there are no details on pricing or availability

Humanoid robots are improving at a rapid pace, and the world's biggest robotics manufacturer, Unitree, has just revealed a Robocop-esque new model called the H2-X Kung Fu Legend Guardian.

A one-minute teaser video released on X and YouTube (below) shows the H2-X in action across a series of slightly bizarre scenarios. The first few clips show the robot unleashing a series of knees and punches to cars in a scrapyard, in scenes reminiscent of a Street Fighter II bonus stage.

Beyond the robot's kung fu credentials, it isn't exactly clear what real-world roles Unitree is trying to showcase there. But the rest of the video shows that the H2-X is being billed as a personal security guard that can jump in front its owner during attempted robberies, or lift cars to release humans trapped underneath.

Unitree hasn't revealed much in the way of specs for the H2-X, with the only specifics being that it's capable of jumping from four-meter high platforms and also standing for "approximately eight hours" between charges.

However, the similar Unitree H2 robot is a 1.8-meter tall humanoid that comes with an optional Nvidia Jetson AGX Thor chip and costs $29,900 (around £22,380 / AU$42,720). We've asked Unitree for some more specifics on the specs and pricing for the H2-X, and will update this story if we hear back.

Not quite ready for security guard duty

It's fair to say that Unitree's H2-X Kung Fu Legend Guardian video is more of a tech demo than a consumer product showcase, in much the same vein as its rollerblading and iceskating demos earlier this year.

However, that doesn't mean Unitree isn't making big strides in humanoid robots, or what is often billed as "embodied intelligence". At Computex 2026 the trio of Unitree, Nvidia and Sharpa announced a collaboration to create an H2+ blueprint for next-gen robots, with Nvidia supplying the much-needed training data and its Jetson AGX Thor T5000 chip.

The H2-X Kung Fu Legend Guardian demo appears to be a different project that's focused more on physical prowess. But despite those impressive jumping abilities, the robot would find it nigh-on impossible to clear the global and national consumer certification hurdles necessary for it make it to market as a personal bodyguard.

It's possible that a version of the robot could be designed for industrial or military uses, but Unitree hasn't yet commented on its future plans. What is clear is that Unitree is keen to continue the momentum it's gained after its IPO in August 2026, which started well but then ran into turbulence last month after a 55% slump from its peak.

According to Reuters, that drop has apparently prompted China to put the brakes on a humanoid robot IPO rush, which has seen half a dozen Chinese robotics companies queuing up to follow Unitree's stock-market debut.

Still, Unitree's latest H2-X video at least keeps us dreaming that personal robot safety guards are coming, even if they might dent a few cars along the way.

• Apple has raised prices across both new and old iPhones
• The iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max models are all pricer than their predecessors
• The iPhone 16, iPhone 17, iPhone Air and iPhone 17e have also gone up

Apple announced a ton of new products at its iPhone Duo and iPhone 18 Pro event today — but one thing it was noticeably quieter about were some price hikes across its entire iPhone range, including both new phones and old.

As expected, the iPhone 18 Pro series have all arrived with a slight premium over their now-discontinued iPhone 17 Pro predecessors. As you can see in the table below, the size of the increase varies depending on your choice of storage — but it goes up to a $300 / £300 / AU$500 for the 1TB version.

Slightly more surprising were the price rises across the older iPhone models that Apple still sells. The iPhone 16 (now only available in a single 128GB version), iPhone 17, iPhone Air and iPhone 17e are all more expensive than they were just last week.

Apple hasn't commented on the reason for the increases, but it's fair to assume that the components and RAM crisis are to blame. Back in June, Apple hiked prices across its Mac, iPad, HomePod and Apple TV ranges — and while these iPhone ones aren't quite as bad in percentage terms, they are similarly unwelcome.

Here's the full breakdown of every iPhone price rise that we've seen today...

New iPhone price hikes

If you're in the market for a high-capacity iPhone 18 Pro, today's price reveals make for particularly tricky reading.

While lower-capacity models in the Pro and Pro Max series have both risen by a $100 / £100 / AU$100, it's the 1TB and 2TB versions that have seen the biggest percentage increases.

For example, the iPhone 18 Pro (1TB), which is traditionally a sweet spot in the range, is 17% more expensive (or 15% if you're in Australia) than the equivalent iPhone 17 Pro model.

But the worst-hit is the iPhone 18 Pro Max (2TB), which has gone up by $500 / £500 / AU$900 compared to the previous generation, a rise of 20% (or 19% in Australia). Ouch.

Old iPhone price hikes

It wasn't just Apple's new iPhones that saw their prices heading in the wrong direction today — all of its older models that you can buy from the Apple Store also got a little bit more expensive.

The two-year-old iPhone 16 is now hard to recommend given it's now 14% pricier in the US and UK following its $100 / £100 increase for the 128GB model, which takes it to a slightly ridiculous $799 / £799 / $1,349.

Both versions of the iPhone 17e and iPhone 17 have been given $100 / £100 / AU$150 increases, which means their 512GB versions have gone up by 13% and 10% respectively.

But like the new iPhone 18 Pro, problems arise when you venture into the higher-capacity versions of the iPhone Air. Its 1TB model has gone up by $300 / £500 / AU$500, which is a 21% hike in the US and UK (or 19% in Australia).

How bad is this?

As we've argued elsewhere, Apple's pricing across the Apple Watch Series 12, Apple Watch Ultra 2 and AirPods 5 wasn't quite as bad as we'd feared, given the context of those massive rises earlier this year across Macs, iPads and more.

But the iPhone news was certainly less positive, particularly those rises on existing models, which is an unusual step for Apple. It's particularly biting if you prefer higher-capacity models, which have been hit the hardest.

Then again, every iPhone looks pretty cheap compared to the $1,999 / £1,999 / AU$3,499 iPhone Duo. Perhaps that was secretly one of Apple's main motivations for launching its new foldable, as its 256GB version is still pricier than an iPhone 18 Pro Max with 1TB of storage.