Samsung Galaxy S5 camera failed issue could be hardware related
Last week, Samsung confirmed that the Galaxy S5 is experiencing an unfortunate bug that causes the device’s camera to fail. The issue seems to predominately affect Verizon versions of the Galaxy S5, though users on other carriers and other regions have reported cases of this happening, as well.
Thankfully Samsung has identified the issue, but it doesn’t sound like it can be remedied from a simple software upgrade at this point in time. The Galaxy S5 reportedly runs into this issue whenever parts of the device’s ROM (that is, the portion of the internal memory that all the OS information is installed to) is corrupted.
There are a wide number of uncontrollable reasons why internal flash storage can become corrupted, though the fact that the rest of the device operates normally for people with these problems leads us to believe there’s some sort of software glitch that specifically affects the portions of the ROM that control the camera. To our knowledge, whatever trigger is causing it has yet to be found which would make it hard for them to get going on a solid fix.
So what to do if you run into this issue? Get your carrier to replace it. You have a warranty for hardware and software defects, so use it. Either head into your local store or give them a call in order to get that process underway.
Those whose carriers can’t help them (either because you have an unlocked device or they simply won’t help you for whatever reason) can call Samsung’s warranty center at 1-888-987-4357, and someone should help get you on the right track. (Extra optional step: pray that your new handset isn’t suffering from the same defect.)
We wish it were as simple as an OTA fix or a hardware reset, but that’s what we have to live with for now. Samsung says they’re not yet sure how many devices have been affected by the issue, so it’s tough to tell if it’s widespread or just a small subset of their customer base. We’ll be reaching out to learn more about that particular statistic or if Samsung is any closer to a fix, but for now this is the long road you’ll have to take if you want a fully functioning handset.
[via ETNews]