Any help with this camera issue I'm having would be greatly appreciated

[tangledweb16]

Ok, so just today I noticed that my back camera is broken. The images show up as kind of heat vision-y, grainy, and washed out. The results are the same both on the viewfinder screen and once the photo is taken. The front facing camera works as always.

Now, this iPhone is a replacement I've had for about three months. I checked on Apple's support site and it said that I was ineligible for telephone support/repair. Unfortunately I am 300+ miles from the nearest Apple store.

I've tried restoring the software, manually rebooting the device, and other small things that popped in to my head as possible solutions.

Any help with this problem would be very appreciated. I know there are smart people on these forums, I've seen them!

 

[Givmeabrek]

Are you using a case, screen protector covering the lens, flash with third party back plate etc.?

 

[tangledweb16]

No. Naked as always. I haven't done anything differently with my phone today. It just... Broke. The camera was fine yesterday.

I'm really guessing it's a straight up hardware failure and I'm screwed.

 

[Givmeabrek]

It does sound like a hardware failure. Let's hope the iPhone 5 gets here soon!

 

[saving107]

If you are not near an Apple Store, then your next option would be to send it in to Apple Care (if restoring the software hasn't worked for you) or find a local Authorize Apple repair shop. You may not be eligible for free phone support, but you could agree to and pay the fee of the call (unfortunately its like $20 or $30). In my opinion, thats a small price to pay than a DIY job or taking it to someone who doesn't know what they're doing and potentially causing further damages.

If you don't want to pay for support, you can still call and ask Apple Care if they can tell you were the nearest authorize repair shop is located (they won't charge you for this).