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iPad Pro Face ID " Camera Covered" when it's not

jlc1978

jlc1978

macrumors 603
Original poster
Aug 14, 2009
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My iPad with OS14 has decided that my camera is covered whenever FaceID is used. It's clearly not, as I have no screen protector and other apps use it just fine. This is apparently some sort of bug as others have experienced it as well. I've tried resets to no avail. Anyone expereinced it and found a fix?
 
jlc1978 said:
My iPad with OS14 has decided that my camera is covered whenever FaceID is used. It's clearly not, as I have no screen protector and other apps use it just fine. This is apparently some sort of bug as others have experienced it as well. I've tried resets to no avail. Anyone expereinced it and found a fix?
Click to expand...
Have you tried cleaning the areas where the sensors are? Maybe fingerprint smudges are obstructing the Face ID sensors.
 
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Don't forget that the FaceID sensor is off to the side of the camera and not always obvious unless you hold to it the light, so just because other apps can use the camera doesn't mean that the FaceID sensor is fine.
My friend who I assisted with a similar problem had a microscopic little spec stuck fast just above the FaceID sensor, but was a long way from the camera so she hadn't realised it could be connected. A lot of buffing and worrying it was a little chip and it cleared.
Otherwise sounds like you might be unlucky and some dirt has got in under the glass in front of the sensor.
 
jlc1978 said:
My iPad with OS14 has decided that my camera is covered whenever FaceID is used. It's clearly not, as I have no screen protector and other apps use it just fine. This is apparently some sort of bug as others have experienced it as well. I've tried resets to no avail. Anyone expereinced it and found a fix?
Click to expand...
I have not experienced this, mine only says it’s covered when it’s genuinely covered.
 
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Tsepz said:
I have not experienced this, mine only says it’s covered when it’s genuinely covered.
Click to expand...

In my case what I have noticed is that whenever Face ID does not work (often enough for me) it shows me some message to check if the camera is not covered. My assumption is that they did not word the message correctly and basically assumes that the only way Face ID would not work would be because the camera is covered. Not the case for me. It just does not always recognize my face.

Maybe something similar happens to OP?
 
Not sure what happened, but now it's working again. Could be that something tiny blocked the sensorand i missed it cleaning and opening and closing my case removed it, some weird bug that the latest beta update fixed, or that my iPad was simply pissed at me for letting the batteries go dead...
 
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jlc1978 said:
Not sure what happened, but now it's working again. Could be that something tiny blocked the sensorand i missed it cleaning and opening and closing my case removed it, some weird bug that the latest beta update fixed, or that my iPad was simply pissed at me for letting the batteries go dead...
Click to expand...
Hii, I am facing the same problem here... How do you fix it or you just left it to be working again?
 
I am unfortunately a veteran of this sporadic issue and I’m determined that it is a software bug that comes and goes with different OS updates (case in point: zero issues for the whole of this year; iPadOS 14.6 comes out last week and now the issue is magically back with my iPad Pro 11” 1G not having left my sofa in the meantime).

If you’re suffering with the same issue, here’s how to check where the problem lies:

- Open Camera and attempt a Portrait shot. If there is a problem with the front facing sensor panel that houses Face ID, the camera and light sensor you will see the following message:

“Move further away”

The background will also not be blurred as it should be in Portrait mode and choosing different Portrait styles e.g. Studio Light, Contour Light, Stage Light etc will not show any difference on screen.

If this is what is occurring on your device it means that the iPad has an issue with the front facing sensor panel and it is not simply a dirty screen. If all the above is still working as it should though then it might be time for a good wipe with a fresh micro fibre cloth to try and clear some grime away (seen or otherwise)!

I wish I had a fix for this and would love to find one but sadly I’ve only had luck with finding this diagnosis so far - would love to here from anyone who has managed a fix but I fear this is actually a software issue at heart
 
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jlc1978 said:
Not sure what happened, but now it's working again. Could be that something tiny blocked the sensorand i missed it cleaning and opening and closing my case removed it, some weird bug that the latest beta update fixed, or that my iPad was simply pissed at me for letting the batteries go dead...
Click to expand...
Good that it is working again. At the “my iPad was simply pissed at me for letting the batteries go dead”, lol.. That definately made my day.
 
@Andyvydna You got it spot on, after much resetting, and trying out different combos it turns out that the diagnosis is indeed as you described. This was on my iPhone 13 Pro Max on iOS 15.3. Funnily enough knocking around the front camera sensor area fixes it momentarily making me wonder if some drop is to be blamed for loose internals. Anyhoo the only fix now is the replacement from apple !
 
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