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TC Camera fix? Like TyTN II/Diamond?

So, there are reports and samples pics of Diamond and TyTN II owners getting MUCH imporved photo quality by simply removing the outer camera cover. The issue with the TC is the camera cover is not part of the battery cover like it is with those devices. I used to think it was an advantage to keep dust out, but seeing how we TC owners can't do this as easily, I'm rethinking that...
Anyone out there tried to remove the TC outer camera cover? If so, how? And to what results?

Any on this?

Could jomo25 post some links to those reports?

Also, after taking a look at this thread, it looks like temporarily removing the top plastic cover isn't that hard. Just do this, and try taking the photos without it.

Indoor lighting conditions

The first picture is good. I'm able to take pictures like that, but ONLY if stay half a minute totally shiftless! And I'm still a human person not a rock!

I found that playing around with the brightness and contrast settings makes a huge difference. The auto settings don't seem to be good for much. It appears the 2 sample pictures have different settings, I've snapped quite a few pics with my Polaris, and can't see the difference shown here being due to removing that plastic (glass?) cover...
SuperJMN said:
The first picture is good. I'm able to take pictures like that, but ONLY if stay half a minute totally shiftless! And I'm still a human person not a rock!
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these are the exif info side by side
you are right, i should have used manual settings, but for me the difference was overwelming and didn't think to make more tests.
After this test, i'm thinking of buying a high quality watch glass cover, have it cut to the right size and replace the original cover lens.
If i'll get to that, i'll come back with some more pics.

ravest said:
Indoor lighting conditions
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Are those two pictures a comparison between the plastic protection on and off?

yeap, i think the images are self-explanatory.

just try too use self timer and set it on 2 sec then uf got time to hold your phone right and you have nice pictures
i use it for myself this way
P.s sorry for my bad english
im dutch

Front facing camera is useless

Well, i am very annoyed by the front facing camera. Every time i use it, i have to use a small shart object to clean the lense of dust. This is the only phone i know that has a recessed camera. Anyone has this issue? Any work arounds?

jason.hamilton said:
Well, i am very annoyed by the front facing camera. Every time i use it, i have to use a small shart object to clean the lense of dust. This is the only phone i know that has a recessed camera. Anyone has this issue? Any work arounds?
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Unfortunately there isn't much of a workaround to prevent your camera from being recessed .
However, I can tell you that I don't have problems with dust collecting on my lens, so maybe it is something about your usage of the phone that is contributing to dust collection. Personally, I have no case on mine, and my phone is usually either in my pocket (facing forward if that matters), or laying face up on my desk at work.
As a side note, I would think that a small sharp object is probably not the best thing to use to clean a lens. Also, are you cleaning the lens because you are actually seeing artifacts when you use a camera app, or just because you see dust on the lens? Especially in the case of the front camera (due to the already lower quality), I am doubting you will actually see anything unless the dust is rather large.

I see it when I try to take a picture. Its all blurry and whitewash. I also see dust/pocket lent. I have ghost armour so not much of a case. I use a mechanical pencil head with tissue on it to wipe the lense. It is fine after that.
Sent from my BlackBerry Runtime for Android Apps using Tapatalk 2

I used the led pencil or pen method with a tisue or cloth and I broke the glass over the ffc.

Yeah I had dust collecting on my front facing camera to the point that pictures were extremely blurry. The solution for me was to simply use a Q-tip to clean the camera. Everything was fine after that
Sent from my One X using xda app-developers app

My girlfriend and i had the same problem. We also used qtips to clean the lens and it was much better afterwards.
Sent from my One X using xda app-developers app

Yup. Q-tip works just fine. I also use just a dab of window cleaner on the very end of the Q-tip, to help pick up the dust. Just enough for the Q-tip to be a bit damp, not so much that liquid gets into any crevices. Even though the Q-tip is bigger than the opening, you can press it in just enough to get the job done.

redpoint73 said:
Yup. Q-tip works just fine. I also use just a dab of window cleaner on the very end of the Q-tip, to help pick up the dust. Just enough for the Q-tip to be a bit damp, not so much that liquid gets into any crevices. Even though the Q-tip is bigger than the opening, you can press it in just enough to get the job done.
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Thanks I will try this. I used a tooth pick but tried to be careful not scratch.
Sent from my Carbon-ize Evita using xda-developers app

jason.hamilton said:
Well, i am very annoyed by the front facing camera. Every time i use it, i have to use a small shart object to clean the lense of dust. This is the only phone i know that has a recessed camera. Anyone has this issue? Any work arounds?
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Click to collapse
Not only is the ffc useless, but so is the main camera. I have NEVER seen such poor behavior from a cell phone camera in terms of getting contrast, saturation, and color balance even remotely close. Skin tones are garish pink, makes everyone look like a cooked shrimp. Warmth is off, and the various color balance modes are completely useless. Yes, I have tried all the various settings and I know a thing or two about I-cameras (http://groovygeek.deviantart.com/gallery). The only semi-usable solution I have hound is HDR Camera Pro, and that is only because it immediately goes into edit mode after taking a pic, with sliders at your fingertips to tweak contrast, brightness, saturation, warmth and hue. I usually find myself backing off saturation quite a bit, bumping up warmth gently to compensate, and sometimes tweaking contrast. EVERY image I have ever taken has needed rather significant tweaking, I am not sure how HTC manages to get it so completely wrong.

GroovyGeek said:
Not only is the ffc useless, but so is the main camera. I have NEVER seen such poor behavior from a cell phone camera in terms of getting contrast, saturation, and color balance even remotely close. Skin tones are garish pink, makes everyone look like a cooked shrimp. Warmth is off, and the various color balance modes are completely useless. Yes, I have tried all the various settings and I know a thing or two about I-cameras (http://groovygeek.deviantart.com/gallery). The only semi-usable solution I have hound is HDR Camera Pro, and that is only because it immediately goes into edit mode after taking a pic, with sliders at your fingertips to tweak contrast, brightness, saturation, warmth and hue. I usually find myself backing off saturation quite a bit, bumping up warmth gently to compensate, and sometimes tweaking contrast. EVERY image I have ever taken has needed rather significant tweaking, I am not sure how HTC manages to get it so completely wrong.
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Shut up, we didnt ask you to come here and complain about the phone, and maybe you should try WITHOUT HDR!

I don't understand. The only reason I would ever go back to sense is for the camera app. It took most beautiful pictures. Then it was a step up in sense 4+. Either your lens are super dirty, or you are doing so terribly wrong.
And to answer your first question, remember cameras on the flip phones...?
Sent from my Carbon-ize Evita using xda-developers app

Mouth ahead of brain..

I love this phone's design more than any phone out there right now (including the One) but I simply can't figure out why HTC didn't think about this recessed camera thing... mines always dusty. Does the htc one have same problem ?

J3susisl0rd7 said:
I love this phone's design more than any phone out there right now (including the One) but I simply can't figure out why HTC didn't think about this recessed camera thing... mines always dusty. Does the htc one have same problem ?
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Q-tip...works like a champ. Just don't press to hard
Sent from my now S-Off HTC OneXL

elfysrfr said:
Q-tip...works like a champ. Just don't press to hard
Sent from my now S-Off HTC OneXL
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+1 works every time.
This post was created and transmitted completely in analog.

I always wondered why the back camera was not recessed some. Now I know why. It seems to get dirty in one day from being in my pocket. It is like a black hole for lint and dust.

The truth is that very little use is given. I occasionally use it for skype and Tango.

I tried doing the Q-tip method and it works fine for a while. Then it starts getting dusty again...
SO ANNOYING, I have to clean every time I want to take a selfie or front shot with me and my friends.
Any other solution!?

Blurry photos

Just having issues with the photos on the One xl. It seems the photos are very blurry and does not take bright light well too.
Here are some examples.

tez1 said:
Just having issues with the photos on the One xl. It seems the photos are very blurry and does not take bright light well too.
Here are some examples.
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Are you using any rom that has focus issues present?

tez1 said:
Just having issues with the photos on the One xl. It seems the photos are very blurry and does not take bright light well too.
Here are some examples.
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Click to collapse
Have you tried cleaning the lens? When ever my photos come out like that, i just give the lens a good wipe down and the pictures come out a lot better

Im using cleanROM which as far as I know has no issues with the focus.
I have cleaned both the outside and inside cover and still the same

tez1 said:
I have cleaned both the outside and inside cover and still the same
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So it sounds like you took the phone apart, in order to clean the inside of the cover? have you ever taken it apart before? Maybe you got a smudge on the tiny lens itself, and not just the cover on the casing?
Are you sure all settings are default? Default is ISO and White Balance on "Auto", and Image Adjustments, all (Exposure, Contrast, Saturation) should be zero.
Does lowering the exposure help any?
This looks like an exposure problem, or a smudge on the lens or cover, rather than a focus problem. The focus actually seems ok.

Rear camera distortion

Just noticed that when things are in the top portion of the picture with the camera tilted down slightly things get distorted. It makes heads oblong and alien looking. Wondering if other people have this same issue or if it's just my phone. So it's really a question of whether the phone is being exchanged or returned.
I've attached two pics. When the tv is in the top portion of the pic it looks a lot taller than when it's in the center of the pic. Both pics were taken from the same distance at the same zoom amount.

Did you take the plastic film off the lens that comes from the factory?

s197 said:
Did you take the plastic film off the lens that comes from the factory?
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I was gonna say the same! Although mine lately has not been focusing at all unless i shake it. View is immediately blurry, but up close to something it is fine. Like it is stuck in close up. Shake it and seems good. This is before ROOT and playing around. Any ideas?

s197 said:
Did you take the plastic film off the lens that comes from the factory?
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Did you have a plastic film on your camera? I had one over the fingerprint sensor but if there is one on my camera it's near impossible to detect, I feel like I'm just scratching at the glass although my fingernail is definitely catching on something. I just cant tell if it's the edge of the glass for the camera or a film covering it.

i had the same issue so i boiled my kettle, and held the phone above it after it boiled and let the steam peel the lense sticker.

omgi0wn said:
Did you have a plastic film on your camera? I had one over the fingerprint sensor but if there is one on my camera it's near impossible to detect, I feel like I'm just scratching at the glass although my fingernail is definitely catching on something. I just cant tell if it's the edge of the glass for the camera or a film covering it.
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If you had the plastic on it, you'd know it. It was very noticeable on mine.

droidiac13 said:
If you had the plastic on it, you'd know it. It was very noticeable on mine.
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I really can't tell if it's there, if it is it lines up almost perfectly. It isn't causing me issues for now though so I'm not going to mess with it.

omgi0wn said:
I really can't tell if it's there, if it is it lines up almost perfectly. It isn't causing me issues for now though so I'm not going to mess with it.
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You would notice in the center of the lens. The plastic would have a cut. Once it's off, the lens is perfectly flat across the top.

The plastic was still on, but no change in distortion taking it off. I'm guessing the cutout in the center of the plastic makes it so it doesn't impact photos.

So I tested on my computer monitor and am able to somewhat replicate what is happening in your shots. However, this distortion is natural because you're tilting the camera downwards on its axis. Its called perspective lens distortion and is common to all cameras without a tilt shift lens (a lens that costs several thousand dollars). You should be able to replicate the effect with any camera phone.

Yeah I've noticed distortion in other cameras but it's just not so extreme. On the s6 the distortion makes any pics with the subject on the edge ridiculous and unusable.
I think I've narrowed it down to when the s6 is set up to shoot max resolution at 16:9. When I switch it to 4:3 the distortion is pretty much gone since that distorted area is just cropped out but that reduces it from 16mp to 12mp. Other phone cameras I've had (moto x 2nd gen and s3) crop the other way (max resolution at 4:3 and then crop to get 16:9).
So the s6 presumably has a 16:9 sensor where the others had 4:3. But the extra width is pretty much unusable.
I'm not sure how I feel about this. What's the point of having a 16mp camera if you can only effectively use 12mp?

Any update on this? I was hoping there's a post processing software in Android/Windows/OSX that can compensate for the lens distortion even though it'll reduced the resolution a bit. I have a AT&T Galaxy S6.
I tried DXO Optics Pro 8, and it works very good for shots from my Nikon D7000 to un-alienize the faces, but there are no modules for the Galaxy S6 lens.

Haze on camera lens and photos.

Over the past few days my pictures have started looking like they were all taken in a 1920s jazz club.
I took a photo on the 9th of my living room setup that came out perfectly clear. The next day I noticed that pictures were coming out a little fuzzy, having a hard time focusing, and there appeared to be a slight film on the lens cover. The picture I post below is from today and the haze seems to cover almost the entire lens cover.
I removed the film the day I purchased the phone and haven't made any changes to my daily routine that may have brought this about.
Does anyone have any ideas on how to fix this? Hair dryer on medium for a minute or so? Should I RMA? Anyone else having this problem?

Is there any kind of condensation under the lens?

igothacked1 said:
Is there any kind of condensation under the lens?
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I can't tell what it is but there is definitely something under the lens. However, I checked the water indicator in the sim tray and it seems to still be white.
Edit: I know you can't really tell anything from those photos. In the first one, even though it is out of focus, you can tell there is definitely something on the lens.

I can't tell much by the photos, but the camera and finger sensor ship with protective vinyl covers. The one on my finger sensor was particularly hard to remove because it was cut and aligned so perfectly, there was no lip to grab. I had to use tweezers to remove it.

sublimaze said:
...The one on my finger sensor was particularly hard to remove because it was cut and aligned so perfectly, there was no lip to grab. I had to use tweezers to remove it.
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Yeah, I distinctly remember the fingerprint protector being a pain to remove. That's why I know there isn't a protector on the lens...

hiko36 said:
Yeah, I distinctly remember the fingerprint protector being a pain to remove. That's why I know there isn't a protector on the lens...
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Ah, I completely missed that in your OP. My S6 takes the best photos of any phone I've ever owned, I have zero complaints about that. Your photo is definitely hazy. I have never taken a photo like that. If you are still in your return period, you should exchange it.
Sent from my SM-G920T using Tapatalk

There is definitely something wrong there. Return the device while you can.
Can't really tell from the pics, but you might have condensation in the inner elements of the compound lens.
Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk

Thanks, gents. Looks like I'll be filing a warranty replacement on Monday.
The only thing I can think is that when I went for a run with it in an armband the morning it started and somehow sweat got in there. I guess they weren't kidding when they removed the water proof rating from the s5.
I attached a couple pictures from before it started. This camera seriously is phenomenal.