Jal1980
Level 1 (0 points)

Q: MacBook Air 2013 with Mavericks 10.9.1 has Facetime HD Camera issues

Hi, I've been using a new 2013 MacBook Air with 10.9.1 for the last 3 weeks (I used to have a 2010 Macbook Pro 15 with Mavericks) and the Facetime HD camera is having issues being detected by different applications.

 

In my case I mainly use Google Hangouts, Skype, and sometimes Facetime. The problem lies on that the camera sometimes works and sometimes it doesn't.

 

I usually reboot the camera with 'sudo killall AppleCameraAssistant' and that makes it work, but it shouldn't be like that.

 

Please note that this was not happening with my 2010 MacBook Pro with Mavericks. I changed to this new 2013 MacBook Air only 3 weeks ago. Nevertheless, people that I work with (who use retina macbooks with Mavericks) are not having this issue.

 

Last week I had to install a plugin (in chrome) for a new online site similar to Hangouts called BlueJeans. Bluejeans very seldomly recognizes the cam, only when I reboot it with the 'line' above or reboot the machine. The people I work with didn't have any issues, so I suspect this has to do with 2013 MacBook Air's Facetime HD cameras which might be different to the rest, or too new on the market.

 

It's as if when I start using it in Hangouts and then hang, later it might not work in Skype, or viceversa.

 

If you can help, that'll be great, and I appreciate it. Nevertheless, I feel Apple must take care of this in the next Mavericks update (many people are having camera issues).

 

Jimmy

MacBook Air, OS X Mavericks (10.9.1)

Posted on Jan 22, 2014 8:17 AM

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Jal1980

Q: MacBook Air 2013 with Mavericks 10.9.1 has Facetime HD Camera issues

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  • Helpful answers

  • by EZ Jim,

    EZ Jim EZ Jim Jan 22, 2014 9:48 AM in response to Jal1980
    Level 7 (22,547 points)
    Jan 22, 2014 9:48 AM in response to Jal1980

    Contact your retailer to have your new Mac checked out.  If you are having trouble doing the same things with your new Mac that worked properly with the previous one, you new Mac may need service or replacement.

  • by Jal1980,

    Jal1980 Jal1980 Jan 22, 2014 10:08 AM in response to EZ Jim
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 22, 2014 10:08 AM in response to EZ Jim

    Thanks, but I really doubt that's the solution. Have a look online at the amount of people that are having the same issues.

    I don't think it's a hardware issue because the camera loads and works, but it loads randomly, as if there are conflicts between the programs that use it.

    I really think it's software related.

  • by dominic23,

    dominic23 dominic23 Jan 22, 2014 10:15 AM in response to Jal1980
    Level 8 (42,105 points)
    Mac OS X
    Jan 22, 2014 10:15 AM in response to Jal1980

    Hope info from this article is helpful.

     

    http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2090

     

    Reset SMC.     http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3964

     

    Choose the method for:

    "Resetting SMC on portables with a battery you should not remove on your own".

     

     

    Best.

  • by Jal1980,

    Jal1980 Jal1980 Jan 22, 2014 11:23 AM in response to dominic23
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 22, 2014 11:23 AM in response to dominic23

    Thanks, but no, it didn't work. I still have to reboot the cam or the machine.

  • by Linc Davis,

    Linc Davis Linc Davis Jan 22, 2014 3:57 PM in response to Jal1980
    Level 10 (208,037 points)
    Applications
    Jan 22, 2014 3:57 PM in response to Jal1980

    You have a one-year warranty. Use it.

  • by EZ Jim,

    EZ Jim EZ Jim Jan 25, 2014 7:25 AM in response to Jal1980
    Level 7 (22,547 points)
    Jan 25, 2014 7:25 AM in response to Jal1980

    Jal1980 wrote: ... I ... doubt that's the solution.... I ... think it's software related.

     

    OK.

  • by JodoYodo,

    JodoYodo JodoYodo Jan 25, 2014 3:24 PM in response to Jal1980
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jan 25, 2014 3:24 PM in response to Jal1980

    I too have this problem, which started after I installed Mavericks.  Updating Skype did not work, and I have to resort to the sudo killall business.

  • by seajay77,

    seajay77 seajay77 Jan 27, 2014 6:34 AM in response to Jal1980
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Jan 27, 2014 6:34 AM in response to Jal1980

    Same problem after installing Mavericks. Mac Book Air 2013. Will try all suggested restarts.

  • by Manveru1986,

    Manveru1986 Manveru1986 Jan 30, 2014 3:00 AM in response to Jal1980
    Level 1 (17 points)
    Jan 30, 2014 3:00 AM in response to Jal1980

    I also have this problem, and also on Mid 2013 MBA, so I don't think it's hardwdare problem.

    Sudo kill works as temporary solution though!

  • by I.Marco,

    I.Marco I.Marco Feb 23, 2014 10:05 AM in response to Jal1980
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Feb 23, 2014 10:05 AM in response to Jal1980

    Absolutly same problem here. I'm very ******, cause I can't even predict if it's gonna work or not. Anyway Facetime is working, but the skype or google+ or facebook is unpredictable. Most of the time I can't get to make it work. Really anoying. If anyone have any solution for this would be very thankfull. MacAir 2013 OSX 10.9.1

  • by LukeRL,

    LukeRL LukeRL Mar 21, 2014 8:46 AM in response to Jal1980
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Mar 21, 2014 8:46 AM in response to Jal1980

    I'm having the same problem with my mid 2013 MBA 13" with 10.9.1. The camera just disappears from the system unpredictably and I have to reboot to get it back. I'm glad I found the killall tip though it's only a temporary fix.

  • by slevarek,

    slevarek slevarek May 24, 2014 3:29 PM in response to LukeRL
    Level 1 (0 points)
    May 24, 2014 3:29 PM in response to LukeRL

    I am having the same issue with my MacBook Pro after the update. NO video camera shows up with SKYPE..

    Very bizarre.. I have tried every.. Updated all programs.. resinstalled Skype.. nothing works..

     

    Please can someone advise us what it is or is not??  When you open the PREFERENCE in Skype, no access to camera is available.

    OSX 10.9.3

     

    I don't believe it is a phsycial camera issue either.. it is definitely due to the last update!

  • by cedric-production,

    cedric-production cedric-production Jul 28, 2014 12:33 AM in response to Jal1980
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jul 28, 2014 12:33 AM in response to Jal1980

    Hi Jal1980

     

    I had the same pb...

     

    On my MacBook Pro Mid 2012 I Had a problem with my video on skype, facetime, photoboot....

    I have tried all the solution offered in every forum and never got to a satisfying result. I downgraded to mountain lion from mavericK without result. I reseted the Pram or SMC (I forgot), and other things, I played with the plugin /Library/CoreMediaIO/Plug-Ins/DAL/, I tried several version of skype.... NONE of this solution worked....

     

    Until that day a friend came to my place and installed AppleJack for Mac, a free software (http://download.cnet.com/AppleJack/3000-2094_4-40293.html) that totally solved this issue amongst others...

     

    Here is the full page of the program http://applejack.sourceforge.net/man.html

     

    And here quick instructions on how to use the program. Have fun!

     

    Restart your computer. After you hear the startup chime, press and hold down the

      Cmd and s keys together (this will put you in single user mode). You should soon get a Terminal-type screen with a dramatic garble of indecipherable messages and a shell prompt that looks something like [root#]

    2. Now, type applejack at the prompt. (If you’ve installed applejack manually, or have not created an alias to applejack for the root user, you may have to enter the full path to the script at the prompt.) You will be guided through a series of steps that will repair your drive and delete possibly corrupted files. Options are selected by typing the number corresponding to the task you want to perform, and then hitting the return key. For example, when you see a few different options, like this:

    [1] Option One [2] Do something else [3] Another task [4] A useful task

     

    From time to time, in interactive mode, you will be asked to answer yes or no to a question. To answer yes, type y and hit the return key. To answer no, type n and hit the return key.

     

    An advantage of using the interactive mode instead of auto mode is that you are given options for also cleaning out user-level caches and preference files. If you would like to clean out your main admin user caches, for example, you will need to use interactive mode.

     

     

    3. Auto mode: If you want to leave

      applejack to do it’s own thing, just choose option [a] when the script starts. You can also start right up in auto mode by typing: applejack auto at the prompt. applejack will run through all the basic cleanup tasks in order. Alternatively, you can also type applejack auto restart which will tell applejack to do the cleanup tasks and then automatically restart your computer. Other options are: applejack auto shutdown which tells AppleJack to shut down the computer after running its tasks, or applejack AUTO shutdown which tells AppleJack to run automatically in "deep cleaning" mode (see above) and then shut down.

     

    I hope this helps. It completely solved my issue.