As with all technologies, cell phones experience problems that don’t involve total shutdown. Instead, only one service or tool stops working out of the blue. A cell phone repair professional can usually help you resolve one or more software or hardware issues quickly. Yet, before you make the call, it’s important to understand the most common camera problems and if you can fix them on your own:
1. Fuzzy Photos and Focusing Issues
When you take a photograph, you need the right amount of light, memory, and charge to prevent electronic image distortion. If the light near the lens is too dark or bright, the camera can’t focus. Anything that covers the lens can also cause a fuzzy photo, such as dirt particles, fingerprint skin oil, or a protective phone case. Additionally, low memory or battery charge can make the entire phone sluggish and cause the camera to focus more slowly.
Any type of hardware part breakdown, often seen after a camera owner drops their smartphone or exposes it to extreme hot or cold temperatures, can cause these problems even while the rest of the phone works fine. A cracked lens, for example, commonly happens in these scenarios.
2. The Flash Dims or Stops Working
A cell phone’s camera relies on a lot of different systems. The flash needs enough resources for the app to time its action accurately and a fully charged battery to supply sufficient light. If it dims or shuts off unexpectedly, you might have taken too many photos in succession, which can cause an app glitch and overheat hardware.
One way to check if the light works is to close the camera app and try a flashlight app. If the light shines bright and steady, the problem likely involves the app. If not, allow the phone to cool and try again. Since the camera needs plenty of memory and battery power to work, it’s also important to shut down other apps, clear the app’s cache and charge the battery fully before using the flash.
3. Repeated Annoying App Glitches
Lastly, camera apps are prone to frustrating glitches. When you’re about to take that “once in a lifetime” shot, the app might run slowly or freeze, generate a black screen, abruptly disappear or shut down, or fail to save any photos. Since the app taps into many of your phone’s resources, a glitch often occurs simply because you have one or more competing apps accessing those resources.
To troubleshoot, shut down all unnecessary apps or bloatware that uses up resources, such as the browser, email, music or video player, and social apps. If you recently installed a new app, remove it. If the phone auto-updated recently, turn off the device, power it up again, and try the app. Also, check the app settings to confirm that the phone’s permissions allow access to the hardware and file storage, or uninstall and reinstall the app.
If the troubleshooting recommendations in this guide fail to restore the camera, it’s time to speak with a technician. A professional mobile phone repair service might discover malware disrupting the app and draining resources or a defective or broken part, such as a damaged circuit board or a cracked or malfunctioning lens.
