Troubleshooting Camera Problems with a Smartphone or Tablet

Apr 12, 2019

If your tablet or smartphone has camera problems, you could miss out on capturing some of the most important moments of your life.

We’ve all become dependent on having our device’s camera ready and waiting, whenever we encounter a potential Kodak moment. But, when you need your camera and it won’t work, it can be frustrating. It may also be costly, if you decide to replace your device rather than seeking out an electronics repair shop.

Fortunately, the chances are good that you don’t need to replace your device. If you can’t troubleshoot the camera problems yourself, an experienced smartphone repair pro should be able to help.

troubleshooting smartphone camera problems

Troubleshooting Samsung Galaxy Camera Problems

If you receive an error that your Galaxy camera failed, power the device off and back on. If that fails, power down and remove the battery. Wait 15-20 seconds, replace the battery and turn the phone back on.

If that doesn’t resolve the problem, perform a factory reset (hard reset) on your phone – but make sure you back it up first. Although your model may differ, pressing the power button, home key and volume up all at the same time should send you to the correct menu.

Some apps can also cause the Samsung Galaxy to have camera issues. If you have any camera-related apps open, try closing them or, if that doesn’t help, delete them from your phone, power down and try again.

If none of these steps correct your camera failure, talk to a qualified Samsung Galaxy repair expert.

Troubleshooting Android Camera Problems

Troubleshooting problems with an Android camera is a bit more complex than many other electronic devices.

Start by trying the usual series of steps. Power the device off and on. If that doesn’t work (and if you have a removable battery), power down, remove the battery, wait a few seconds and then restart the phone. Next, try clearing the phone cache through the “Camera” app (depending on the model of your device, this may be done through Settings > Apps > Camera).

Next, try deleting any apps you installed right before the problem started, especially if they use the camera or the flash (such as a flashlight app).

If none of these options work, backup your phone and perform a factory reset.

Troubleshooting iPhone & iPad Camera Problems

Your options are limited for troubleshooting camera issues on an iPhone or iPad. First, check to see if both the back- and front-facing cameras are having problems. If it’s one or the other, you may need to have the faulty one replaced.

If you have iOS updates you haven’t installed, take a moment to get those up-to-date and try again.

Try powering the device off and on and, if that doesn’t fix the issue, try a hard reset. If you have other apps installed that use the camera (Facebook, Instagram, etc.), try to access it through those.

Those are about your only options for trying to fix an Apple device camera yourself. Talking to a qualified iPhone repair expert is the next step. In most cases, they can replace the defective components and spare you the cost and hassle of replacing your device.

If you have another type of device, such as LG or HTC, the process for troubleshooting problems can vary widely based on the brand and model. FixIT Mobile | Bad Apple, with locations in Utah, is the smartphone camera repair expert you can trust. Contact us today for same-day service.