2018 MacBook Air HD camera is in poor quality.

Same here. I followed all the recommendations to fix it (trying different apps, users, utilities, etc), afterwards I called apple support and after 40min on the phone they told me that this specific computer was designed to have bad quality camera under non-natural light. They said it will only look good during day light and if I'm in a room with lots of natural light. Unbelievable! They said there's nothing they can do from their side to fix it because is not a software issue or a bug. Their only suggestion to "fix it" was that I only use the camera by day in a bright room, I'm speechless!

Unfortunately I can't return the computer because it has been a month since I bought it, but if you are still on time to return it I highly recommend to do so since apple doesn't have any solution and apparently they are not willing to do anything to compensate this fault.

Shame on apple! After 20 years of using mac I'm planning to leave it once and for all.

Boriskonrad I strongly recommend to return the computer. I have the same problem and after talking to apple support for 40 min, they admitted that is the camera itself of this model that was "designed" to perform with good quality only if you are in a very bright room or with lots of natural light. They told me it's not a software issue so they don't have any plans to fix it, and that the only thing we can do is either return the computer within 14 days of purchase or file a complaint at http://apple.com/feedback/

Besides the camera I had problems with the computer since day 1 and just now it turn off itself while I was writing this post. Unfortunately I can't return it because I bought it a month ago, but you are in time. This Macbook Air 2018 is really garbage. Is the worst mac I've ever had since 20 years of using mac.

Hi Yimin,

I am not sure whether making staff aware in the store is going to help anything? Because that is what I did.

As I mentioned, I went to the main Apple store on George street in Sydney to check all the new MacBook Air's on display (there was about 4 or 5 of them) and ALL devices had the same issue with the camera, bad quality, pixely and grainy.

When I called a staff member over and compared it to the old model Macbook Air who has the same 720p camera he was shocked and lost for words. All he said was to bring the device back and get my money while it's within the two weeks.

(they are still selling them despite me making them aware of this issue across all Macbook Air devices on display ⚠)

I also called Apple Support on the weekend as suggested above and send them pictures of proof. Likewise they were shocked and transferred me to the highest level (those who work with the engineers). I was asked to do several restarts and updates. Nothing worked.

This was my first Mac and a disappointing experience thus far. I will return the device and go back to Microsoft.

Just ended here a call with apple support. Dont even know how many calls and chats I had so far.

Support, senior support, engineers, after sales team. There is no solution for that. It is what it is.

So my only option is to return and get a refund. have now words

Don’t waste your time i have bought a MacBook Air and replaced it twice plus checked every laptop at the Mac store this is an issue with this computer and Apple is stating that this is “working normal” basically the Face time camera is not up to quality in clarity and deal with it until Apple feels like it should be addressed ... I have troubleshot this with Apple for a day and this is the final response

Hi DJ Hardy

21 pages of posts is a lot to read. I’ve been following this issue for a couple of months and to my knowledge the only solution is to take the MacBook Air back to Apple and wait for a model that meets their published description of “friends and family see you in sharp detail”. - if they can see you at all - right?

As I have previously mentioned in the 21 pages of MBA poor HD camera history - it could take 6 months to see a fixed model - if not more. As MBA 2018 early adopters we can help apple by taking every MBA back to help cycle their inventory.

I read posts about finding a fix by editing some files - but it seems that people are not convinced.

My gut (based on over 20 years of electronic manufacturing experience) tells me this is a Hardware issue and is a hassle to resolve.

The most shocking thing is the response from Apple - or should I say - the lack of response...

Webcams are built for video chats, quick and dirty recordings, not

really for high-quality video production. You probably have not enough

light in your room and haven't noticed it since the Webcam just bumps up

the ISO/Exposure until it looks well-lit. The problem is that

increasing the ISO basically means amplifying the sensor signal

digitally, which will also amplify the noise and artifacts in your

video.

Try to clean the camera. Maybe is blurry cause you touch it with finger

Oooh yeah, thank you so much. All of us, 1100 users reporting this issue, had just dirty camera. Problem solved!

Yes, same here. Bought my MacBook Air 2018 exactly one week ago in Sydney. HD camera quality is terrible (foto attached), grainy and blurry.

Reminds me of how cameras used to be in the 90's. Something is definitely wrong with the camera.

I stopped by the Apple store in Sydney (I did not have my new device on me) and checked the camera on the other Macbook Air 2018 devices on display. They ALL had the same issue... I compared it with an old model of the macbook air on display which has the exact same 720 pixel camera and it was a HUGE difference. Called over one of the staff working there who was shocked when he saw the difference and didn't know what to say.. other than to bring it back and get a refund, which I will do in the next couple of days.

I also spoke to Apple technical support who have not been aware of such problem. I was asked to reset and update the MB air which didn't help unfortunately.

I've been contacting Apple support for a few days regarding this issue now. Everyone at Apple is shocked at the quality deterioration from last generation of MacBooks. I've even compared the latest MacBook Air 2018 with MacBook Air 2012 and the latter is noticeably better in picture quality. I went to a few Apple Stores and all MacBook Airs are the same, and the MacBook 12"s are the same too (MacBook Pros are slightly better but do have similar grainy issues). I fear this is the situation for the last few years and it might be the case the Apple already knows the issue but continue to ship such cameras... I can't even return my MacBook Air to the retailer (not Apple Store) because it's not a 'technical fault' as all MacBooks are the same...

Shockingly disappointing...

Today I was in the store, checked new Air. The camera there is good, much better than mine.

So it IS a technical fault, and looks like defective camera. Thinking about returning/replacing my Air. Tomorrow I have a call with Apple to discuss that.

I bought my 2018 MBA on launch day. Noticed the camera (at home) is so much duller than the ones I saw in store. Made an appointment with an Apple specialist via call, talked to him for literally 45 mins, to “troubleshoot” and not only did he say nothing’s wrong with my new MBA after the whole conversation and hassle of troubleshooting, he also suggested me to bring my machine down to the store to compare with the display sets... and if it’s really of faulty or different to a certain extent, I could get a refund or an 1:1 exchange. I didn’t bother, because I somehow knew the camera for this MBA works like that. I went to at least 3-4 different stores from my area to see if they look any different... nope, they only look "normal" with super bright/good lightings on. They all look dull, grainy and blur if I block out the lightings around me.

After searching through online, I’ve decided that this is the camera I’m getting for MBA. I hope this is a software issue though. The portability of MBA is insane tbh, I wouldn't wanna get a MBP because I'm just a Biz student...

Hi Fra41,

my conclusion out of that what you have observed is that the quality is acceptable in some environments.

What I've observed so far is that the quality is acceptable in case of bright daylight conditions and in office/store environments with strong cold color light on.

At home you are using in general warm light. So far I don't know anybody (with the exception of the Apple support stuff) who reported that the quality in case of warm light is acceptable. The escalation managers from the Apple support team are asked by their managers to tell the customers that the quality of the MBA camera is an expected behavior.

May be you can ask the second store for a test run in your home environment. I would be really glad to hear that I'm wrong.

Best regards,

Axel