Macbook Air M1 camera quality

Bought a MacBook Air M1 4 days back and noticed significant difference in camera quality. Picture is very blurry. While doing a FaceTime with my wife, I found her picture quality from on older MacBook model to be far clearer than my new machine, which she also pointed out right away.

Another surprising issue is that whenever there is an LED light in the background, it interferes with the FaceTime camera lense and one can see a thick vertical ray of light running across the screen.

Surprising part is that on contacting the apple store and apple call centre, I was just given the response that “Apple is aware of the LED issue”.

The picture quality during FaceTime was so bad that I was thoroughly convinced that the camera is faulty. However service center executive maintained that it is not a hardware issue and also somewhat conceded that camera in the new machine are not that good and that there is nothing he can do.

It is really disappointing that in the latest MacBook model the picture quality is so bad specially in current working from home environment due to Covid.

I actually just got off of a phone call with multiple support agents.

The first one said she wasn't aware of any issue or why anyone would even have reason to complain about the quality of the camera, basically saying it was the hight of Apple engineering. Of course, I asked to be transferred to someone else or to have my ticket escalated and had to schedule a call back for a couple days later.

The second one said she also wasn't aware of any issues, but outright said that even if there should be issues I really shouldn't be concerned about them because no one ACTUALLY uses their MacBook cameras--we've all got iPads and iPhones for that after all. When I asked why she thought people wouldn't be using their MacBook cameras for video calling loved ones or for working during a pandemic she suggested she transfer me to her supervisor.

Leo spent quite a bit of time gathering information. He came back and told me that all the MacBooks have used a 720p camera since 2018 and anyone saying it looked worse than previous years is lying. When I said it looked worse than my 2015 windows 2-in-1 he said that not every camera is created equal and that we could check to see if it was a software issue or a defect in the camera. I tried multiple camera apps--zoom, webex, teams, FaceTime, PhotoBooth, etc, and multiple different lighting schemes. It was until I put a ring light behind my head to give myself a halo that the picture quality actually improved--at the cost of casting my face in shadows and making me look like a corpse. Leo then said that it was definitely due to the quality of the camera and that if I was outside the return period that I would just have to deal with it. When I asked why Apple Support Communities hadn't been updated with a response from Apple he said that it wasn't the job of Tech Support to check this, despite this being the first step I was directed towards when I started trying to figure out what was wrong with my camera. He said if I was unhappy I could call the direct customer complaint number, which I'll post in a separate section because I'm not sure if posting support phone numbers is allowed and I don't want my post to get removed.

The complaint specialist, Jess, said that if I was dissatisfied enough that I should just take my computer to an Apple store and have them try to diagnose the issue, and that just because other people are complaining of an issue doesn't mean it's all true, let alone even for the same reason. When asked he didn't know who moderated this forum either. So it seems like we're out of luck for now.

TLDR; Apple is not aware of why anyone would have an issue with their low quality cameras from 2018 and doesn't expect people to use them for video conferencing, even during a pandemic.

Here are steps to know what's the issue as per my experience:

Little story first:

I bought Apple MacBook Air M1 2020 on Dec 1 2021, and found 2 days later when I wanted to try a video call with my brother that my video in FaceTime looks awful.

Then I just jumped into internet to see what's going. But couldn't see any answer, may be I couldn't go into so many posts.

Now till almost midnight it kept me worried, there is hardware fault, then in the morning I tried to test in natural light, it performed better but colours were still washed out, not as per a 720p camera, at least not expected from Apple.

Then further it clicked to me, let's try another application so tried WhatsApp, and boom it looks clear, background looks clear, colours are as good as looks like 720p.

So problem for me was FaceTime is not performing well or there is still some options to tune in FaceTime, or may be Apple will send an update later.

And why FaceTime is acting wired could be many reasons, related to how it's guessing your internet speed to decide quality, or how it's processing video effects on the fly like blurring background etc.

Now you have to try couple of video calling apps, and if you still see same problem, then you can try return/repair/replace or just accept as it is. Because it could be poor hardware with your device. If not on all the applications video quality is bad, then you can wait for an update.

I can live without FaceTime or any Apple application but not faulty hardware and OS flaws ! I'm a C programmer I just need terminal, and good display :-P which is best in MacBook Air M1.

If it solves your problem then you know what to do => Let others, know :-)

Hey guys,

I had the same problem and sent my mac to apple store...they replaced the whole lid of this. You all should get your screen changed.

I got my MacBook back just now and now it's working good even in normal lighting conditions. :)

Call 408-996-1010 to leave a complaint with a real person. Ask for a reference number just so there's a record of the issue and your complaint.

Or you could send an email through the feedback website (https://www.apple.com/feedback/), but I don't think that's likely to be as helpful--I would imagine Apple ignores that just like they ignore this forum.

I purchased a new MBA M1 this week, upgrading from a MBA circa 2015. Was horrified by the poor quality of the webcam when I got it home (having spent the better part of an afternoon getting it set up with all my files etc). I use Zoom a lot - and the quality on my previous 2015 MBA was way better. It's practically unusable on my new machine.

I made an appointment at the Genius bar earlier today and took it in. The Apple store is flooded with light so I could not replicate the problem there - but, realistically, the set up in my home office is never going to be as bright as the Apple store. I suspect, having read all the posts on this thread, that it is indeed a design issue with not enough light getting into the aperture on the new MBs. Pretty big fail by Apple. My plan is to stick with my old MBA for now (I returned the new one) while I look around for a better solution. I really don't want to get an external webcam when I'm spending $2K on a new laptop.

They haven't changed my MacBook but just the screen for changing the camera. Now it works like any other MacBook camera.

Pretty good quality. :)

i just got my mba yesterday, and the first thing it shocked me was the image quality from the camera. i immediately noticed difference between my mid-2013 mba and the m1 mba 2020. called apple support and they say they will exchange another one for me and hopefully the camera works fine.

anyone has solution for this issue? or after exchange did the image qualify improve?

NOTE TO APPLE: I will hold off replacing my perfectly working 2014 MBA (with a superior camera) until a better built-in camera is offered.

OP: I had the same problem and friends with recently purchased MBs also have the same issue. It's bad hardware. I returned a new 2020 intel MBA for that reason (plus the loud fan.) Both made video calls unacceptably loud and blurry.

This was definitely a disappointment. I got my Air back in the fall of 2020 and I was excited to finally make the switch from PC to Mac. For the first month or two, I was convinced it was my fault - low lighting. I rearranged my living room to sit closer to some lamps. Bought external ring lights, etc. It wasn't until even *that* didn't solve the issue that I realized...its just a bad camera. It's incredibly disappointing for a machine at this price. And the way people rave about Apple products (including me, when talking about my phone and iPad), it certainly didn't live up to my expectations.

I started looking into the Pro and was shocked to find even that model had the same kind of camera...

I spoke to Apple about this and they gave me a line about it being down to poor lighting where the computer was being used - totally denied any knowledge of this being a problem - also completely dismissive when I made comparison with my old MacBook Pro.

I was asked where I bought it - Apple Store or retailer. I was told my complaint would not be against Apple and I should take it up with the retailer. That’s what I plan to do!

trying to work out why I keep buying Apple products as their customer support and product resilience is really not good….. my MacBook Pro had to go because the letters on the keypad smudged and wore off - Apple had never heard of that happening but somehow I don’t think mine is the only one to suffer with that problem ….

Yes, but the original one on the Macbook Air has bad quality. So if they repoace for the same nothing changes…

A proper place for this kind of action may be better use of your time as well:

• Apple Product Feedback - Apple

https://www.apple.com/feedback/

Any suggestion/indication of success/failure may not yield Official replies.

Same issue here with the Macbook Pro M1.

I still have my old Intel MBP. I compared the facetime camera image quality on both, side by side, and the difference is shocking. The M1 looks like an early 2000's camera phone.