I have the XDA Exec (for 1 day), seems like a good bit of kit, but I haven't been out of the house with it yet, so it will be interesting what living with the beast, in an inside jacket pocket will be like!!
I need to find out if the problem I'm having with the front camera brightness is just my unit or a common problem, I can adjust the brightness for the back 1.3 mega pixel camera jus fine, but the adjusting the brightness for the front camera has absolutely no effect, and all the images are very dark?
Is this normal, or should I be hot footing to my nearest o2 shop for a replacement?
Nope, its normal. I have handled quite alot of 3G phones (as you can see from my sig) and currently have about 10 atm (althought they are all really really bad, but still classics). Nearly all of the 3G phones with second cameras are really dark. The phone makers like nokia, sony ericsson or HTC in this case, dont acually put alot of consideration into the front cameras. As the network only runs video calls at 64kbps (on most 3G networks) then there isnt any need for more than a VGA camera really. They concentrate mostly on the back camera, as this is what people will use most.
Besides, the front camera has to be really small (otherwise it would look stupid sticking out of the front of the phone) so they dont really bother with it. Video calling hasnt really taken off properly yet and for most people, its an extra gimmick that they wont use. But your not alone. Nearly all phones with a internal camera are terible quality, excluding rotating cameras, as they would be the same as the back (as its the same camera).
Hope this answers all of your questions.
Front camera, brightness controls don't work.
Thanks for the reply. Just to clarify, if I select the front camera for a video call, there is a brightness control on the screen. But sliding the control up and down actually makes no effect on the image whatsoever, I guess I would aspect to see some sort of change, no matter how small, but this doesn't appear to work.
If I select the back camera, then there are a range of controls, including contrast and brightness. The brightness control does work here.
Just need to find out if anyone is able to get some sort of brightness improvement on their front camera, i.e mine is faulty, or if this slider has no effect on the xda exec.
Also side point, the front camera on the Nokia n70 3g phone is very good, for any one that is interested.
Hm dont acually have any experience with the N70 as its a fairly new phone, but on my 6680, the front camera is reasonable, but nothing to shout about.
Yes its the same on mine, it does nothing. Maybe it changes on the peoples you are calling screen?
Well, I think there's something wrong with your devices. The brightness setting on the video-calling camera definitely makes a difference to the picture on my JasJar.
It isn't the biggest change in the world, but there's definitely a visible difference in the brightness.
(By the way, I don't have a "slider", just five buttons to tap on to vary the brightness, that's not where the confusion is, is it??)
Front camera brightness
I just changed my handset for another xda exec, as I tested the new unit in the store, on the general camera mode, which does indeed have brightness levels 1-5 as sub69 says, and this does have a small but noticable difference.
However, on getting the phone home and actally trying a video call, which has a different brightness contol on screen (showing 5 values from black to white) on a vertical slding scale... I notice this control makes little or no difference to the picture.. which leaves me back where I started, plus I think my signal is weaker than on the last unit!!!
Oh well, I'll see how I get on
Hhm yes I have also got a slider. I think it might be somthing to do with the Exec, as you are on e jasjar. It will probably be rectified in the next ROM update, whenever that may be!
Hi all,
I've had my HD2 since around Christmas time and I love the device, but I've always had a problem with it's camera. This is not the usual "Pink cast" problem which I know is well documented, but rather a problem with the autofocus. Sometimes when I'm just playing with the camera it works fine, but most of the time (usually when I really want or need to photograph something) the camera cannot focus. It TRIES to focus, I can hear the lens moving and the image on the screen goes from very blurry, past the point of focus, back to blurry again and then the camera takes the photo blurry. It seems to be able to focus on my hand or anything else I hold very close to the lens, but anything else and 9 times out of 10 it will not focus properly. I've found that usually if I reboot the phone it will work for a while but then I've missed what I was trying to photograph in the first place. I was wondering if anybody else has experienced this problem with their HD2?
Here's a few points I think are worth mentioning:
The handset's ROM is the standard one that came installed when it was new, I have never upgraded it or patched it (I know there was a patch for the camera but as far as I was aware this was to try to fix the pink cast problem, correct me if I'm wrong).
The problem occurs in all lighting conditions.
Touch focus is enabled but touching the screen results in the same problem, it tries to focus but fails. I feel that this is very likely to be a hardware problem but then on the other hand, why would restarting the phone make it better if it's a hardware fault?
Any help, input or shared experiences will be very much appreciated.
Thanks
[email protected] said:
Hi all,
I've had my HD2 ...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey i have the same problem! i wanted to send my HD2 in to get it replaced but they said it was a software problem i dont really think so tho.
It would be really nice to see someone dev an app or a new rom that fixes this problem.
If i hear anything i will post what i know.
Hi,
excuse my poor english.....
I had the same problem with original italian ROM (1.66) until this summer.
On my device I have two applications that can increase the picture sharpness (BsB Tweaks, XTHackBeta2).
In these apps I enabled the "increase picture quality" but my pictures were always blurred, especially when there was plenty of sunlight.
I tryed to contact HTC Costumer service, they told me to have an hard reset but it did not solve the problem, also without no one applications installed on device.
It might seem stupid but, after that, I cleaned kindly but strongly the camera glass and I set the resolution camera to 1 Mb, making pictures and check how autofocus was working, then, step by step, I set to 5 Mb on camera configuration with Super fine quality pictures.
And I disabled any increasing picture quality on every apps (BsB, XT Hack)
It could be a miracle but I had never had the problem of autofocussing and pictures became very detailed and brighted
Same problem for me. Have a german 1.72 t-mob ROM.
Reducing the picture quality is not a solution for me.
In my case the problem occurs every time I try to make photos of any documents inside rooms, but with good light conditions. I need about 5-10 trials to make one well focussed photo. It's equal if I use autofocus or not.
If I go outside I can make very good photos from some natural objects, even when they are very close.
I enabled camera Superfine in BsB Tweaks.
I have googled this issue many times but i seem to be the only person having this problem.
I have an LG E900 and i think its a great phone. Has great apps etc etc and i like to wp7 os.
However, i regularly need to take close up images of small parts for work and it seems i can never get the photo right or the camera seems to have a mind of its own.
I had an iphone 3gs before this - i checked the specs and the LG camera is technically superior - but i never had any issues like this.
Whenever i go to take a photo the camera focuses in on the part, so it looks perfect on screen and then does one of the following.
1 - Flashes and i get a nice white screen
2 - Takes the picture with no flash and i get a black screen
3 - Goes to take the photo and then doesn't.??
4 - Perfectly focused image on screen and then sits there, i go to re-take and it takes the picture quick, giving me a blur.
Sometimes it may take me up to 25 tries before i get a usable image.
Really starting to piss me off, such a pity as when it gets it right, its perfect.
Then some joker walks up behind me with a nokia 5110 and takes a pic, no problem..Grrr - what am i doing wrong??
It doesnt save your settings either - another gripe for another thread
I don't have any issue taking close up pictures, if it's too dark it will use the flash, if it's light enough, it won't.
Works fine for me
The LG camera IS poor!!!
Here are a few hints to get a better image. Due to WP7 not keeping your camera settings, you need to set them every time you start the Camera app.
1- Use the the Intelligent Shot options (Smart Scene does a fairly good job) to adjust to your environment,
2- Do not use Beauty Shot unless you are taking photos of people, it doesn't make the photos pretty.
3- There is an Anti Shake option at the end of the camera settings menu...It is basically a software image stabilizer, and works very well.
4- Don't let the phone decide whether to use the flash or not, and set it yourself for sensitive photographs. Brightness settings also help when played around with ( you have to figure out which settings work best in what conditions on your own)
5- Always, ALWAYS semi-press the camera button to let the phone focus and get the white balance...otherwise your photos will look like crap...then take a picture...you need to do this every time.
I sometimes have to "scan" documents and writings on the spot, so with these things kept in mind, you can take fairly decent photographs.
Also, I have done a bit of modification to make the flash better...In my opinion, it is too white. I took a very transparent yellow plastic, and cut it to exact size...it fits in well on the top of the flash (since it is slightly in the phone, rather than flat), and my photos now seem a lot warmer...
I do wish the camera was a bit sharper and had better lowlight performance of course...
PS: And obviously nothing compares to Nokia phones' cameras...well, except the iPhone in some cases...
my camera is sooo slow. i push the button and after like 3sec the camera flash and snap a crapy quality picture... :| i have tryed the camera app found here on xda. still no good
are you finding the rest of your device is a bit more sluggish than what we all keep going on about?
i mean, mine flys, no lag on anything. If so then perhaps SD card issues are the reason?
To note, the camera is a bit dodgy on the HD2, the flash isnt on early enough and you end up with a slightly tinted image, also because of focus not available on built in program it can take some dodgy photos. you said you tried the alternate camera app, did you change the settings? it defaults to lowest.
yes have changed the settings. same and blurry
My camera sometimes refuses to focus correctly. When I want to take a picture (e.g. outside in the sun) I tap te screen to focus at something(like a few meters away from me). I see a green circle so it thinks it is in focus but in fact it is still really blurry. The lens is not moving far enough to get a sharp picture. I made the following video to describe the issue:
This effect is already there after a factory reset, firmware G900FXXU1ANE2 and G900FXXU1ANE4 show this problem(I only use stock firmware). I already swapped my S5 for a new one at the store but the problem is still there.
The only solution I have is to focus to something really close and then focus to the thing I want to make a picture of. This temporarily solves the problem (could happen that it works fine for the rest of the day). It is quite annoying when I want to quickly make a picture and get something like https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/831846/s5/20140718_154250.jpg. I tapped at different things visible in the picture but it simply refused to focus normally. When I apply the trick of focusing really close first I get a sharp result: https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/831846/s5/20140718_154350.jpg
Does anyone have issues with the focusing? The S5 really disappoints me here. I constantly need to verify whether it has focused correctly.
hberntsen said:
My camera sometimes refuses to focus correctly.
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Click to collapse
No doubt this is frustrating to you. But it's regrettable that you didn't elaborate at more length about the nuances of how you use the camera, what circumstances this happens in and attach sample photos.
We are left uncertain if it is a problem with the phone or your usage. Given that you reflashed a stock firmware and exchanged the handset, it seems quite unlikely to be a defective phone. So it seems that you either unhappy with the camera's performance or something in your technique is impairing the focus e.g. having a thumb obstructing the sensor when holding the camera, not holding it steady, et cetera.
I don't have any issue with the focus on my S5, nor heard many complain about it either. Check that you aren't obstructing the camera sensor, perhaps try some test shots from a tripod. Explore the camera settings menu. Try a third camera camera app, which may resolve the issue outright for you. Demo other phones to see if you prefer their camera results.
.
Thanks for your response, I mainly tested the camera to capture non-moving things (like the flowers outside) but usually I take pictures in all kinds of circumstances. I understand that it is hard for a camera to handle low light situations or situations where there is lots of movement. I also experienced this issue last night (indoor with lights on) but I can understand that's hard for a smartphone camera. I already have issues outside, with plenty of sunlight, capturing things that don't move/change.
I have owned a Galaxy S3 for 2 years and of course that camera sometimes did not focus correctly. The difference is that with the S3 i could simply tap the screen again and it will focus alright. With the S5 I first need to focus to something close, and then back again to the thing I wanted to make a picture of. So I kind of need to reset the focusing mechanism. That's what is annoying. I used my dad's iPhone 5 and could take the same pictures without any problem.
As far as I know I'm not using the camera any different than with my S3. In the video it might seem a bit shaky but that's due to the uncomfortable position of holding the phone in front of the camera. The issue is still there when I use something like a table to stabilize. Does the camera flash/heartbeat sensor play any role in focusing (outside with plenty of light)? I can't remember if I obstructed those. I'm sure I didn't block the camera with my finger .
I've briefly tested the Google camera app to confirm the issue is there as well. I could test with that some more but as far as I know the camera focus code is done in some hardware-specific library and the camera app simply asks the library to focus. The stock should just work on the default settings. Selective focus is off, face detection does not matter (but I only tested this without people in the picture). For focusing the options are pretty limited.
It indeed seems like I'm the only one. Maybe people don't care enough (the blurry pictures can still be fine for facebook posts). Couldn't it be a defective batch coming from Samsung? I find this hard to believe too. To me it seems like a software problem. The camera is trying to focus as fast as possible, it barely moves the lens if it is in a state where it thinks it is already focused. That's probably why focusing really close helps; it needs to do a 'full' re-focus.
Edit: Just tested the google camera again, wasn't blocking the sensors on the back in any way:
1. Opened app while pointing at the flowers
2. Tapped the flowers, saw focus ring, tapped again at another place but no difference, still blurry
3. Took picture: https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/831846/s5/IMG_20140722_132806.jpg
4. Focussed to something close
5. Pointed camera at flowers again
6. Touched to focus (looks sharp now)
7. Took picture: https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/831846/s5/IMG_20140722_133109.jpg
It's so simple to get such a blurry picture. In something like half an hour later I tried to take another picture but I already had to apply the fix again...
Also having problems with focusing on S5
Hi there,
I was reading this forum and have the EXACT same problem with my S5! The camera won't focus at all! it was like that when i got the phone, then i took it in for repairs and it came back much much better. but then literally overnight it just decided to stop focusing again. it won't focus on distance shots. i've tried playing around with all my settings again, but nothing is solving the problem. i tap the screen to get it to focus with the green square, it says it's in focus but all of the pictures are blurry!
Did you manage to come right with getting your camera to work properly @hberntsen?
hberntsen said:
My camera sometimes refuses to focus correctly. When I want to take a picture (e.g. outside in the sun) I tap te screen to focus at something(like a few meters away from me). I see a green circle so it thinks it is in focus but in fact it is still really blurry. The lens is not moving far enough to get a sharp picture. I made the following video to describe the issue:
This effect is already there after a factory reset, firmware G900FXXU1ANE2 and G900FXXU1ANE4 show this problem(I only use stock firmware). I already swapped my S5 for a new one at the store but the problem is still there.
The only solution I have is to focus to something really close and then focus to the thing I want to make a picture of. This temporarily solves the problem (could happen that it works fine for the rest of the day). It is quite annoying when I want to quickly make a picture and get something like. I tapped at different things visible in the picture but it simply refused to focus normally. When I apply the trick of focusing really close first I get a sharp result:
Does anyone have issues with the focusing? The S5 really disappoints me here. I constantly need to verify whether it has focused correctly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I dont know if you are rooted but if you are i would deffinitely install the following MOD as it fixes alot of the samsungs Camera Shortcummings
http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s5/development/mod-hx-camera-mod1-0quality-t2816831
My problems vanished, it could be due to an update from Samsung to ANG8. When I had the problem I tried various camera apps(also the HX mod) and all of them had the focusing problem. The HX mod does not help since the focusing code is not modified.
Camera focus fix
Hi guys!
I've been having this problem of the camera not focusing either. I did some looking around on the internet and found a quick and easy fix!
It seemed that my camera app/cache had become corrupted, as was common with the S5.
Go to Settings>Application Manager>All>Camera and then clear the cache. It was only about 35kbs.
I restarted the phone after this and the camera now focuses brilliantly again! No issues at all with far away or really close.
Give that a go and see if it works for you!
I'm having exactly the same issue im confident its a camera hardware issue. Im sending the unit back to Samsung to replace or repair overall im disappointed and find the camera very poor.
I took a video for you guys because you seem to all be having the same issue.
http://youtu.be/VZdJD0z2duA
Mine focuses perfectly without me even touching the screen. When I do touch the screen it always reports a clear focus. Otherwise I can just move around and the camera automatically detects the distance even through a window, and instantly adjusts the focus to compensate.
If your phone does not behave the same way, then it's a defect, you aren't holding it correctly (blocking or obstructing the sensor) or you are experiencing some sort of other issue.
Some cases can ever so slightly interfere with the sensor too. The sensor is so much wider than you think when you look at it directly. So if you have even anything slightly in the field (even the field that is not displayed on the screen) it may give you bad results with focusing. (However I see the OP has no case in his video).
Overall I am 100% satisfied with this camera.
What I have found in testing is if I tap the front of the phone with my finger the focus kicks in a works, temporarily however it resorts back to the non focus issue after a brief period. Any shots taken at close range are fine its basically any shot the it using the zoom function or any shots of anything at a distance such as a scenery shot.
---------- Post added at 09:10 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:04 AM ----------
leijonasisu said:
I took a video for you guys because you seem to all be having the same issue.
http://youtu.be/VZdJD0z2duA
Mine focuses perfectly without me even touching the screen. When I do touch the screen it always reports a clear focus. Otherwise I can just move around and the camera automatically detects the distance even through a window, and instantly adjusts the focus to compensate.
If your phone does not behave the same way, then it's a defect, you aren't holding it correctly (blocking or obstructing the sensor) or you are experiencing some sort of other issue.
Some cases can ever so slightly interfere with the sensor too. The sensor is so much wider than you think when you look at it directly. So if you have even anything slightly in the field (even the field that is not displayed on the screen) it may give you bad results with focusing. (However I see the OP has no case in his video).
Overall I am 100% satisfied with this camera.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The camera focuses and shows the green circle each time, but when you look a the shot you can see the blur this is with shots taken in daylight.
leijonasisu said:
I took a video for you guys because you seem to all be having the same issue.
http://youtu.be/VZdJD0z2duA
Mine focuses perfectly without me even touching the screen. When I do touch the screen it always reports a clear focus. Otherwise I can just move around and the camera automatically detects the distance even through a window, and instantly adjusts the focus to compensate.
If your phone does not behave the same way, then it's a defect, you aren't holding it correctly (blocking or obstructing the sensor) or you are experiencing some sort of other issue.
Some cases can ever so slightly interfere with the sensor too. The sensor is so much wider than you think when you look at it directly. So if you have even anything slightly in the field (even the field that is not displayed on the screen) it may give you bad results with focusing. (However I see the OP has no case in his video).
Overall I am 100% satisfied with this camera.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The camera focuses and shows the green circle each time, but when you look a the shot you can see the blur this is with shots taken in daylight.
---------- Post added at 11:16 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:19 AM ----------
priormix said:
Hi guys!
I've been having this problem of the camera not focusing either. I did some looking around on the internet and found a quick and easy fix!
It seemed that my camera app/cache had become corrupted, as was common with the S5.
Go to Settings>Application Manager>All>Camera and then clear the cache. It was only about 35kbs.
I restarted the phone after this and the camera now focuses brilliantly again! No issues at all with far away or really close.
Give that a go and see if it works for you!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is not the fix I've tried that several times without any luck
Non focus - FIX
Update:
My S5 has been repaired by Samsung to resolve the non focus issue the problem related to a faulty camera module and was replaced with an updated camera module the focus now works perfectly. If you have this issue you'll need to get the camera module replaced it would seem a lot of S5 users are having this problem.
Im having this issue and its really annoying. Im thinking of sending it to repair, but im afraid that : a) might still come out the same b)Lose waterproofing since they have to actually remove the screen/front to fix it c)they don't do anything because it focus sometimes and it might focus when they do the tests
So, what would be a good indication that focus problems is really a faulty sensor? Compared to my s3, the s5 struggles to focus and its really noticible when i try to take a picture of text and close up.
Blurry
I got a similar Problem, but I am not absolutely sure if it´s focus-related or something else with the camera.
Almost every picture I take is blurry, and my focusing lens is also very loud when I shake the phone.
I compared my S5 to 2 others today and mine was really having the worst image quality, no matter what I did. Changed all settings on my phone to match the other one which has good IQ, but it really doesn´t change anything.
Someone said to change ISO to 100 instead of Auto, this improves a little bit, but still the other pix are way clearer.
Will wait for Lollipop Update and see how it improves, but I guess its a hardware issue.
I have read about that camera noise and Samsung has said it's normal and part of the camera module and system. Strangely, I never heard it on mine.
Have you tried photos outside in sunlight? Camera seems to show its worth only in those conditions. Regardless, if full auto in different s5 is better than on yours that much, then you might have a bad sensor and should get it replaced.
In good light conditions the pix look quite good, but as you take photos indoors the´re just blurry and smeary. No sharpness. Compared it to an iP5s first and then to the other S5s, even checked my old S2, which also made better pictures.
Now I wonder if I really wait for Lollipop and hope it´s a software issue or directly use the warranty.
Thinking about rooting and using custom ROMs, I didn´t really find out if this is possible with LP as well (given it´s possible to downgrade to a towelroot compatible version, say 4.4.2 as atm). Is there a chance?
What would you suggest? Wait for the upgrade and if it doesn´t help, send it to the support? Or do this right now and hope they will also see the difference to a good camera and replace or repair it? Have to wait like 2 weeks they said.
Thanks!
Honestly, we are all going to start accepting that the camera is not that great in anything other than outside with direct sunlight (or probably with studio film lights but not everybody has those laying around).
Auto-focus is not great and its very frustrating actually, even if you have decent light inside, it miss it a lot of time and you have to keep moving and pressing the screen - but put it outside or next to a window in daylight and the autofocus works well enough. Oddly, my s3 still has better/more accurate autofocus in lower light scenarios than the s5, even if the final image isn't that great (its actually inferior, but autofocus works much better). The s5 focus for a split second and then loss focus.
Also, most photos i take on the s5 just turn out having way to much noise.
I don't think software is going to do much at this point. It helped in the first batches, but now im starting to think is more the sensor fault than anything else. I don't think lollipop will help unless we get the manual controls, which samsung s5 doesn't have on lollipop rom. Also, i remember reading that lollipop didn't improve the camera quality on the s5. Software will help quite a bit, but it won't be everything.
With warranty, if they test it and are able to get it focus a few times they probably won't fix it or replace the sensor, unless it's something really bad - but that's my opinion and why i haven't used the warranty on mine, because they might test it in better light and get the focus to work and won't even bother.
Also, im afraid it will lose the waterproofing from factory. I recently saw videos of repairs on the s5 and the whole fron't screen needs to be removed in order to access the camera or any hardware and im afraid that might in any way compromise waterproofing - i don't plan on take it on the water but who knows.
So, personally, im just trying to accept that the camera isn't that great as i thought and not stress more about it. If your camera does take inferior photos compared to others and you have similar problems with focus like OP, then i suggest you take it to the warranty. If its just focusing problems in low light or inferior image quality in low light with pictures coming out the same as other s5's (not compared to other phones, different sensors), then it probably won't do much taking it to the repair center, unless it gives you peace of mind or getting another opinion from the repair center.
Where the photos were taken was irrelevant, inside or out the camera module was faulty on my one a problem many S5 users have had it's NOT software well not in my case anyway this solution is get the module replaced the S5 camera is average at best and if compared against the likes of the Note 4 it's very poor.
True. I asked if he tried outside because in my case the camera focus better outside with a lot light , even if inside is well lit enough to take a picture. Most of my problems are with focus inside, even is decent light, it just doesnt want to pick proper focus and it shouldnt be like that, my old s3 and other older or lower-end phones are not like that.
Unfortunately the camera was so hyped for nothing, yes it takes good pictures if are outside during the day but its a pain to focus or get a picture that isnt full of noise, the s4 took good pictures and it wasnt a mess to focus. I havent sent mine for replacement because i just know they are going to test it in a well lit enviroment and it will probably pick up the focus and send it back.
Samsung repaired and replaced my camera module without any question once I'd demonstrated the issue I even sent them the link to this thread. I found the camera focus was even worse when using video.
Agree the S5 as both a camera and a smart phone is average at best hence why I use the s5 rarely now with the Note 4 as my main phone.