Grainy Image on MacBook Air 2020

Have just purchased a new MacBook Air (2020 model). Have bought to use for home working (Zoom meetings, etc) and the image is really grainy when using Zoom or FaceTime. Is this normal with Macs?

MacBook Air 13", macOS 10.15

Posted on Apr 12, 2020 1:50 AM

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Posted on Feb 25, 2021 9:43 AM

Basically what it means is that they are very very aware of this issue.


Their process is to classify issues as either expected or unexpected. If it's expected it means it's "our fault" for not knowing the camera image quality is impacted by poor design not allowing for enough light to enter the lens. That they have no recourse to fix it. It is hardware and it's a design flaw. It actually has nothing to do with the camera quality. Not something they are currently able to fix. I said its false advertising and they said prove it. That's why your camera quality is better on older models. More light coming into the camera. Its beyond stupid they let this happen. haha Someone got fired for sure I imagine.


I have a Macbook pro 2019 I just purchased in Dec for 5500.


Its way better in natural light.


Who the **** has access to natural light in their office lol. I am lucky to have some and can see the clear difference, but at night it is unusable.


When I bought my computer for the Macbook pro this was still not classified expected behaviour. It became expected as I was negotiating with them.


This is why they sent me free accessories.


Now, they have changed the classification to "expected." This means you have no recourse whatsoever with Apple other than complain and hope they offer something in the future who those who did.


All you can do is return it and buy something else or wait for their next release otherwise.


Yes, you and all of these other people have fallen through the cracks. (As of Feb 25.) If "Apple cares" they would immediately fix this issue. They just pretend too like the others. Not a special company lol.


507 replies

May 18, 2020 2:52 PM in response to orangegrouptech

i've just taken delivery of my MBA 2020 and the camera image is so terrible I am not sure what to do about the machine now. I paid to have a ton of upgrades so overall this was a £1800 machine. The camera is about the worst i have seen since laptops started coming with in-built cameras. I hope, Apple, you find that damning... but i suspect you won't care. The web is awash with similar complaints. To see someone commenting saying wipe the screen and check your internet connection; it's just offensive. The camera quality is so bad in low light that i can barely even recognise myself. I joined a video call the other night and everyone was commenting about how bad it was, unprompted. I genuinely don't know if I will keep this macbook... i feel like it will be my last, at least, if this is the type of thing we can expect. Apple support were meant to call me back this evening to discuss it but what a surprise, they didn't.

Sep 24, 2020 8:08 PM in response to _KL_

Cute pictures 😀 📸


At a glance, the top one (newer) is clearly more susceptible to lower lighting (e.g., smaller aperture, ccd, etc.) than the bottom one--no argument there; however, the reason(s) for that difference can be a series of engineering compromises and tradeoffs.


For example, I can see here may be everything from sensor size to power consumption, especially considering the differences between the '14 and '20 Airs (e.g., Retina screen, bezel size, CPU performance, etc.) yet the latter has equivalent if not greater battery life than the former.


With that in mind, I think a fairer comparison would be in brighter, more direct lighting. ☀️💡


I can share with you that my aging '17 MacBook Pro looks a lot like your top photo in similar lighting but in bright lighting looks excellent for my screencasts and Zoom meetings.

Oct 16, 2020 4:00 PM in response to Jackelburger

I’m not gonna lie to you, all the MacBook Airs have crap camera resolution and video resolution compared to the pro.

i own the 2018 MacBook Air, even returned it out and asked for another one. They’re just not made for the visuals of the camera and watching videos. Trust me, everything looks better on the Pros and I love my air. Never again will I get an air as much as I love the way they are light, feel great and etc.

Oct 27, 2020 8:57 PM in response to T_Raz

ok so basically i was saying that my MacBook Pro 2017 looked just as grainy and weird as my grandparents old 2008 to 2009 mac desktop (i really should've given more context), and so does my late 2011 macbook pro, and both of my grandparent's macbook airs, BUT this generally only occurs when its moderate to low ish light, if your in a well lit room and stuff you don't see any fuzz at all. (even this sounds a little bit weird with wording (this reply) but you get what i mean)

Nov 5, 2020 9:35 AM in response to Jackelburger

I have the same problem with my new MacBook Air (2020 model) too. My internet connection is definitely alright and no fingerprints on my screen. I even placed my old MacBook Air side by by side to the new one. The old one is a lot sharper.


I thought it was something wrong with the camera too, so I brought it to the Apple support to get it fixed. I was informed that it is normal for MacBook Air 2020.

Nov 9, 2020 10:00 PM in response to Stoicia

Dudettes and dudes, not wanting to reign on anyones parade here, if you get a refund please say so. BUT, all reporters and tech articles were ******* about the camera since Jan/Feb of this year about the front camera. Still, it doesn't make up for the low quality but since its for all models... I doubt there can be anything done about it...

Nov 16, 2020 2:21 AM in response to sharun290

We as family are all hardcore users of all APPLE PRODUCTS since many years. Our Case ID: 101207405965 dated 13th October 2020: I have purchased the latest MacBook Air (Retina, 13-inch, 2020) on 8th October 2020 as a pre-birthday gift to my daughter - KRITTIKA, but we both were absolutely disheartened to find such A LOW RESOLUTION WEB-CAM on it. We purchased this laptop as an upgrade to our earlier MacBook Air-2015 (even that had a better resolution Web-Camera as my wife still uses another one). This Webcam seems like the Old i-Pad 1&2. Very sad and highly dejected to buy this product. Why has Apple downgraded its product? It is an earnest request- Either provide us with another better MacBook (Free of Cost) OR kindly fix this WebCam issue on our MacBook Air 2020.

Dec 2, 2020 9:20 AM in response to saira303

As I said in a previous comment, I have the same problem with my MacBook Air 2020. Today I went to Costco, and I went to the laptop section to check the quality of the cameras. The light in the warehouse is quite good, so the image quality looks okay for someone who wants to buy a Macbook. But if you hover your hand 5 inches away from the camera to just provide a little shade, you can see that the quality of any 2020 MacBook, Air or Pro, is really poor.

Dec 24, 2020 6:06 PM in response to Jackelburger

yes, and there is nothing we can do to fix it. I went through the lengthy process of explaining the whole

issue and how I love Apple, etc. They are going to send me some ear buds. No recall. The company

needs a recall. These cameras are horrible. So unprofessional . The only option for us is to, and

the technician told me this in so many indirect words, is 1. buy an external camera 2. write a letter

to management, and 3. be more careful next time about buying Apple products.

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Grainy Image on MacBook Air 2020

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