The camera on the Android phone does not work: the black screen is on, the application is not responding (the error is possible: "could not connect to the camera")

User question

Hello.

On my phone, when I try to open the Camera application, nothing happens (just a black screen), no errors, no messages. Those. the application starts, but the camera itself does not work (does not shoot anything). I also noticed that sometimes an error appears: "could not connect to the camera" ...

The rest of the phone behaves as usual (everything worked before). What can be wrong?..

Hello.

Unfortunately, the problem is not that rare. In general, I would divide it (conditionally) into two possible scenarios:

the problem is of a software nature: failure, errors, viruses, incorrect operation, etc. (and then there is a chance to restore the camera on its own);
in the phone, something broke from the "pieces of iron" (here you can't do without service and costs ...). The most favorable scenario is that the train has simply gone away.

In this article, I will give several recommendations (step by step), following which, it is often possible to restore the phone to work (if the problem was in the first scenario).

Be that as it may, going through the steps of the article, you at least exclude some of the reasons (and it may become so that you will save), before a possible trip to the service ...

Restoring the camera to your phone: what to do step by step

STEP 1: restart your phone

Perhaps this is the first thing to start with. In view of various failures, errors, incorrect shutdown of some software, it may happen that the camera will show a black screen and not work.

A simple reboot often helps to "revive" and return the phone to working condition ...

Note: to reboot (turn off) the phone - just hold down the power button for 3-5 seconds until the special appears. menu over the desktop. See example below.

Reboot your smartphone

STEP 2: check if the camera is sealed with tape (if there is any debris, dust on it at all)

Pay close attention to the surface of the camera: there is no debris, dust, etc. on it. It is recommended to wipe the camera with an alcohol wipe (although, of course, I note that dust often causes image deterioration, and not its complete loss).

If your phone is new, and you turned it on for the first time, then carefully examine the phone to see if there are any protective films left on it. Often, manufacturers seal the camera with a special protective tape (this also applies to the contacts of the battery, see photo below).

Sticker on the camera and phone battery (as an example)

Note that in some cases it is barely noticeable, and the color may coincide with the body of the phone (that's why many do not notice it).

STEP 3: reset camera settings, clear its cache

Next, I recommend opening the Camera application (with which you are shooting), opening its settings and resetting them to default ones (ie those that were by default). In some cases, due to the inclusion of some functions "not brought to mind" by the developer, the smartphone may start working incorrectly with the camera.

The screenshots below show how to reset the camera settings on Android 8.0

Restoring camera settings

Default camera settings (Android 8.0)

I also recommend clearing the app cache "Camera" ... To do this, open the Android settings tab "Apps and notifications" , then find in the list and open its properties (see screenshot below).

Camera - clear cache (Android 8.0) / Clickable

Then click on the button "Clear cache" .

Clear cache

STEP 4: remember recently installed programs ...

The fact is that some audio and video programs may conflict with the camera application (especially, this applies to software designed to replace the standard application). This category includes: editors, programs for taking screenshots and video from the screen, voice recorders, players, etc.

Therefore, if you installed something from such software the day before, I recommend paying close attention to it. Try uninstalling this software, restart your phone and check how the camera works ...

Pay attention to the software that you installed the day before

STEP 5: Have you updated the system? It might be worth doing a rollback ...

Many users note that problems with the camera (and not only with it) often begin after updating the system (moreover, in the latest versions of Android this happens almost automatically (just by accidentally clicking in the wrong place ...), just like in Windows. .. ) .

If it happened exactly according to this scheme, then here you can advise, either roll back the system to the factory presets, or wait for the next update from the developers, in which they will fix the problem ...

System update (Android 8.0)

To rollback, you need to go to the Android settings in the section "System / Backup & Restore" and click on item "Restore factory settings" .

A warning! After rolling back to factory settings, all your data from the phone will be deleted (make a backup copy in advance!).

Backup & Restore (Factory Reset)

STEP 6: check your Android for viruses and malware

Unfortunately, now there are already enough viruses on Android (you can pick it up, for example, when installing various games from little-known sites). In general, when a phone gets infected, you usually notice the following things:

various banners begin to flicker on the desktop (including a number of applications where there has never been an advertisement before);
the phone may start to freeze, reboot arbitrarily;
there may be problems with the installation of a number of software: when the phone is installed, it simply goes into reboot;
spontaneous updates, installation of applications, etc.

If, in addition to the camera, there are problems of the above nature, I recommend that you carefully check your phone for viruses. This topic is quite extensive, and in order not to "inflate" this article - I will give below a couple of links to help.

👉 Instructions!

1) How to remove a virus from an Android phone

2) Antivirus for Android: choose reliable free products.

STEP 7: pay attention to where the snapshots / videos from the camera are saved

If you save images / videos from the camera not to the internal memory (but, for example, to an SD card), then in cases of problems with it, the application "Camera" can wait for an answer from her, and while there is none, show nothing. In some cases, the camera turns on with a delay of 5-10-15 seconds, and after the picture, it "darkens" again for a certain time.

To fix this, you can go in different ways: try changing the SD card; change the location of saving pictures (done in the application settings, see the screen below).

👉 If a you lack inner memory and you are therefore using an SD card, try going to cloud drives

Where are camera shots saved

By the way, also pay attention to the fullness of the internal memory. If you have very little space left, this can also cause such "glitches".

👉 Help!

There is not enough space on the phone (Android), not enough memory. What can be done ...

Inner memory

STEP 8: try using alternative apps

Besides the standard "Cameras" on Google Play, you can find dozens of very different analog applications. Moreover, some of them significantly surpass the standard application in functionality and capabilities. For example, I am personally impressed by Camera MX (I recommend trying it).

Camera MX

Link to Google Play: //play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.magix.camera_mx&hl=ru

Shooting with the Camera MX app

Simple and reliable application.Allows you to slightly expand the capabilities of the standard "Camera", offering richer functionality. I also can't help but mention auto-focus, which helps to take better pictures (moreover, they can be taken faster, since there is no need to be distracted once again).

Application advantages:

a large number of settings, effects, filters;
good automatic focusing (which is lacking in the standard application);
easy scaling with your fingers;
the ability to edit captured photos;
the ability to record in any resolution that your camera physically supports;
lack of advertising.

STEP 9: Hard Reset

If the reason for the inoperability of the camera was any system update, application, viruses, etc. "things" that could damage the software (some system files), then one of the solutions will be to roll back the system to the factory presets (Hard Reset, if on English).

In this case, of course, user data will be deleted from the phone (make a backup in advance!), But at the same time, all garbage, all errors, and incorrect parameters / settings will be deleted. Because This topic is somewhat extensive, below I give instructions for solving a similar problem.

👉 Instructions!

How to reset Android settings to factory settings [Hard Reset] (ie delete all data from your phone, tablet)

If all of the above steps did not work, then I'm afraid it's time for you to get ready for the service. Disassemble the phone yourself (without proper experience (or money for a new )) - I do not recommend it!