Honor is all set to launch its next smartphone lineup on May 22. Ahead of its release, the company has announced its partnership with Google Cloud to bring AI image-to-video capabilities to the Honor 400 series. It will allow users to generate videos from static photos. Google recently rolled out Veo 2 support for Gemini Advanced subscribers, but Honor’s upcoming phones will be among the first to have first-gen Veo’s capabilities baked into the OS.
The Honor 400 will be able to create five-second short videos and moving photos from static images. It will also have the latest Google Imagen models to enhance AI performance. I reached out to Honor to better understand the use case and whether a phone can stand out with AI features, considering most of them use the same AI models.
“For content creators and marketers, the AI image-to-video feature streamlines the production process by generating engaging video content from still images in seconds, ideal for social media, advertising, or storytelling. This technology showcases how AI can enhance creative expression while saving time and effort,” says Eric Fang, Senior Director of Product Planning at Honor.
The AI image-to-video feature is jointly developed by Google Cloud (Veo) and Honor. Like most AI features, it doesn’t work on-device, but Fang assures, “Protecting user privacy is Honor’s top priority, and user data will not be used for training.”
Honor recently announced two more features: AI Outpainting and AI Eraser. The former simultaneously supports rotation and 200% expansion of the original image, promising “better consistency and faster generation times,” while AI Eraser is said to “adapt well to scenarios with multiple people and various objects.”
You will not be required to sign in to an Honor account to use these AI features. However, “With the increasing popularity of AI application scenarios, some advanced functions may require an Honor account login in the future,” said Fang.
The Magic Portal feature is one of the few unique AI capabilities that I find useful whenever I return to an Honor phone. Fang believes, “Natural interaction (such as Honor’s AI Magic Portal and AI Magic Capsule), proactive services, and AI Agent will bring real, beyond-expectation value to users.” It will be interesting to see how consumers react to additional AI features now debuting on mid-range phones instead of flagship devices.
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