NickDroid86
Android Enthusiast
I'm going to call best buy to see what they can do today.
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Help 1.13.604 Update adds "Dead Pixels" in Camera?
- Thread starter Brooks777
- Start date
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- motorola droid x
The blurry pics are from a dirty lens. Make sure you clean that damned lens before taking pics next time! LOL!
(I found out the same thing the hard way.. LOL!)
benjiedude
Android Enthusiast
Here's my experience with this. I start recording video of my kids today and notice a red pixel while the camcorder is up. I then play back the video I just took and it's there also. I connect the phone to my 1080p TV an see that the red pixel shows up there as well. I go back and check videos I filmed on 7/18 which have NO red pixels in them. Videos all filmed after I got the update ALL have red pixels. I call Verizon and after 2 hours of crappy phone calls and being transferred, a conference call with Motorola and they tell me the phone is defective and to return it to Wal Mart since they can't replace a Wal Mart bought phone. I called my local Wal Mart and they have 1 in stock which I'll be by to pick up in the morning. Damn LCD screens, technology, updates, etc.
I don't know. All I know is that my brother and coworker both have the 604 update and have zero stuck or hot pixels in the default camera/camcorder. This is not a software issue or everyone would be seeing CCD issues with the 604 update. All of us having issues have faulty CCDs that are acting erratic and the only way to get some stability is to exchange the phones. I wish I could just switch with my bro when he's not looking.
BTW, did you get your phone right away around the 15th like I did? I wonder if there is a common denominator with early adopters or something. Maybe those first production runs had some ESD issue or some other quality issue. I assume a CCD is highly sensitive to ESD. Who knows? I know Motorola will never tell us.
Beasnizzle99
Well-Known Member
I don't know. All I know is that my brother and coworker both have the 604 update and have zero stuck or hot pixels in the default camera/camcorder. This is not a software issue or everyone would be seeing CCD issues with the 604 update. All of us having issues have faulty CCDs that are acting erratic and the only way to get some stability is to exchange the phones. I wish I could just switch with my bro when he's not looking.
BTW, did you get your phone right away around the 15th like I did? I wonder if there is a common denominator with early adopters or something. Maybe those first production runs had some ESD issue or some other quality issue. I assume a CCD is highly sensitive to ESD. Who knows? I know Motorola will never tell us.
Yep. Ordered mine on 15th. Got it 16th
Hmmmmmm? Ordered mine the 15th with overnight shipping.
benjiedude
Android Enthusiast
Update: I switched out phones at Wal Mart for a brand new DX. No dead pixels whatsoever. I'm not gonna do the update until Froyo. Burn me once but you won't burn me twice Motorola.
I'll add in my experience:
Prior to an update, I didn't notice any dead pixels. I got my phone in last Monday, update mid-week. Today, when I took a picture using stock camera or camcorder, I had 3 dead pixels, blue, red, and slate grey, one near three of the reticles. My girlfriend had two purple ones in two opposite corners.
I opened the barcode reader and there are no dead pixels. If I cover the lens with camera, you can see them, but not on the barcode reader. Also, I have FXCamera, and there are none there.
Should we return our phones or is this just a software bug that will be cleaned up soon?
Also: capturing a video will show "dead pixels" (my blue one is gone, my red one is the same, and my slate grey is now purple), but a picture will not. I don't get it.
Prior to an update, I didn't notice any dead pixels. I got my phone in last Monday, update mid-week. Today, when I took a picture using stock camera or camcorder, I had 3 dead pixels, blue, red, and slate grey, one near three of the reticles. My girlfriend had two purple ones in two opposite corners.
I opened the barcode reader and there are no dead pixels. If I cover the lens with camera, you can see them, but not on the barcode reader. Also, I have FXCamera, and there are none there.
Should we return our phones or is this just a software bug that will be cleaned up soon?
Also: capturing a video will show "dead pixels" (my blue one is gone, my red one is the same, and my slate grey is now purple), but a picture will not. I don't get it.
I called and went to a store yesterday to no avail. All they wanted me to do was a hard reset, but the issue is still there. The dead pixels are really only visible in low light, but it shows up on the screen and in the picture/video recording. I tried camera360, and it didnt show up there. So I'm hoping that this is just a software related issue. Both tech's I talked to said they haven't had any "known issues" in their database, but that seems kind of weird because people on here are talking about getting a replacement because of the issue.
I am having the same problem did not notice them until last night when I put my hand over the lens. I recorded video to see if they would show up, and sure enough they do. Looking at video before the update in low light there is nothing. I don't understand how this can be software related? Post your problems in the Motorola support forum https://supportforums.motorola.com/thread/32777?start=0&tstart=0
benjiedude
Android Enthusiast
Update: More BS with this dead pixel crap and my rant over at Motorola's forum about this issue.
I've had so many problems with the Droid X pixel fiasco it's not even funny. I'm on my THIRD Droid X. That's right...I've gone through 3 and am going to have to try a 4th now. I originally bought my DX full retail at Wal Mart on 7/14/10. Loved it...until the update on 7/20. All my videos in low light before the update had no red or blue pixels whatsoever. After the 20th I started seeing 2 red and one green flickering pixel while filming video but not on camera pictures. It would show up when transferred to my computer and when using the HDMI cable to my TV. After numerous calls to VZW and them not knowing about the issue, they started conferencing in Motorola reps who also said they knew nothing of the issue but would document my case. I advised I felt that this was a software issue and wanted to know if I should keep the phone until an update was available. Ultimately, after 2 factory resets and me redoing all my G-mail, Facebook, Twitter, etc. set ups, both VZW and Motorola reps said I would have to return the phone to Wal Mart where I bought it to have it exchanged. I was able to locate 1 Droid X in stock at another Wal Mart locally and had to get manager approval to have an even exchange out for the new Droid X. They let me keep my memory card while they kept the other one with the now "defective" Droid X. So here I get my 2nd Droid X and I'm happy for a few hours. No dead pixels and I chose not to update to the new software update knowing it ruined my first Droid X. I plug my phone in at night and go to bed. I wake up, grab my phone to check some e-mails and an update flash comes across my screen saying "Update successful. Your phone is now updated to...blah,blah,blah." I said "Oh sh1t"...that's right, I literally said "OH SH1T" and knew that there would be dead pixels so I go to camcorder to verify this and low and behold: TWO BLUE DEAD PIXELS and ONE FLICKERING GREEN PIXEL. I was pissed to say the least. I never once accepted the update and i know I don't play with cell phones in my sleep. I called VZW again and they were baffled and clueless again and conferenced in Motorola again. Bottom line...they said I needed to take the phone back to Wal Mart for exchange AGAIN. I'm fuming at this point. I call another local Wal Mart and they have one in stock. I go down there go through manager hassle BS again and they agree to exchange out the phone for me. I get the phone activated and come home. Get everything back on there and set up without doing the update because I want no dead pixels. Well, as I'm setting up this phone I realize it's wifi feature is not connecting. I call VZW and they tell me to keep pushing Wal Mart's return policy but they couldn't do anything. On top of that I turn on my camcorder and realize after holding it up to a high lit area that i have a DEAD PIXEL. This is a real dead pixel not caused by software update. It stays on the screen no matter what but is not visible when on darker pictures or backgrounds. It's black in color and looks like a spec of dust almost in the exact middle of the Droid X screen. Good thing is that it does not transfer on video or pictures recorded on the phone and is a true dead pixel in every sense of the phrase. I'm just so frustrated at this point because if the original problem was a software issue as it looks like it's turning out to be...then VZW and Motorola made me return 2 phones so far that could've been fixed via firmware update but now I have a phone that has a true dead pixel which can't be fixed via firmware...not to mention the spotty WiFi problem with this 3rd Droid X I've tried. At this point I'm supposed to call my closest Wal Mart Tuesday and see if they get any more phones and go for my FOURTH Droid X. Shame on you Motorola and screw you Verizon for being clueless.
If you get another replacement, look at the cam before updateing. As previously mentioned, it looks like the update is the cause, not bad photo sensors. Load scanner, and look at it as well.
I see stuck pixels on my camera, but if I load scanner, they are all gone. This indicates that the sensor is picking up properly, but the display driver for the phone is not displaying the image properly. if that is the case, then the next update might resolve the issue.
I see stuck pixels on my camera, but if I load scanner, they are all gone. This indicates that the sensor is picking up properly, but the display driver for the phone is not displaying the image properly. if that is the case, then the next update might resolve the issue.
This is an honest question for the people who cite using a different camera app as proof of this being a software issue:
Are you sure the native camera resolutions you are comparing between the Motorola camera app(s) and the 3rd party one are the same?
Cameras can be initialized by the software in different resolution modes- it could be that your third party apps, not being specifically tailored to Droid X hardware, are not running the camera in the same hardware-specific resolution mode. As a result, you might not see the bad spot on the camera's sensor.
To add a bit of evidence to the "this is a hardware issue" side:
I was going to take my Droid X back to Verizon today over a big, bright-blue pixel I'm getting in video mode, but I got sidetracked and ended up coming back home. I accidentally left my phone in my car after heading inside. An hour or two later, I realized my mistake and retrieved it. It wasn't cooked or anything, but the inside of the car was fairly warm. Anyway, while the phone was still a bit warm from the car, I tried the camera app to see how the pixel was doing. Surprisingly, I saw that there were now 5 or 6 new "wacky" pixels of various colors on the camera feed. After I let the phone cool down to a normal operating temperature, the other pixels went back to normal, but the original bright blue one remained.
Having seen that, my money's on this being a hardware problem as others have mentioned before. If an update "fixes" it later, it will most likely be code that looks for errant pixels in some kind of silent post processing "smudge" procedure. That's pretty CPU intensive, so my guess is that it'll never happen.
100% agree. The "smudge" procedure you refer to is a type of pixel sharing where the faulty pixel "shares" with adjacent pixels to mask the problem. I always thought this was reserved for higher end equipment though. I still think this is a hardware issue myself. But, Motorola could prove me wrong. Actually, I hope they do because I want to keep my current phone. I have no dead pixels on the LCD.
wrathletik
Newbie
My replacement came in today and it was already updated to .604, no pixel problems within the camera/camcorder app. Too bad for all the people with pixel probs after the update, but I guess this shows that DX's updated by verizon don't have this problem. Sorry.
My replacement has a real dead pixel within the screen itself and is going back. On to the next one...(that's 3 Droid X's now.)
http://i36.tinypic.com/4vpai8.jpg
Definitely shows up in pictures.
TWO red dots can be seen in this picture.
ONE blue dot can't be seen in this picture.
The picture is all black because the red ones are easiest to see, but this REALLY bugs me when taking video, because there are two red and one blue dot very easily visible.
Definitely shows up in pictures.
TWO red dots can be seen in this picture.
ONE blue dot can't be seen in this picture.
The picture is all black because the red ones are easiest to see, but this REALLY bugs me when taking video, because there are two red and one blue dot very easily visible.
Pixel1:
Vertical: Little below middle
Horizontal: All the way on the left
Pixel2:
Vertical: Little more below middle
Horizontal: Just right of the middle
Just to update folks with a comment from a motorola rep on thise forum,
I have the issue too btw :/
Is there a 3rd party camera app out there that for sure is taking pictures in 8mp mode? or that can shoot 720p video? I have an odd feeling that the 3rd party apps we aren't seeing the issue in (scanner etc) are not using the full resolution feed from the camera. I bet the issue is there in all apps, just not visible.
That doesn't mean the problem isn't software based though. Updates can (and likely did) include updated hardware drivers. This hopefully just messed up how the phone gets the feed, but I immagine it could also be that the software update, having bugs in the camera driver, is maybe giving too much power to the camera or something. In other words I hope the software update hasn't caused an actual hardware issue that wont be fixable with another update.
I had this happen on an old old old webcam is why I suspect this...
I have the issue too btw :/
Is there a 3rd party camera app out there that for sure is taking pictures in 8mp mode? or that can shoot 720p video? I have an odd feeling that the 3rd party apps we aren't seeing the issue in (scanner etc) are not using the full resolution feed from the camera. I bet the issue is there in all apps, just not visible.
That doesn't mean the problem isn't software based though. Updates can (and likely did) include updated hardware drivers. This hopefully just messed up how the phone gets the feed, but I immagine it could also be that the software update, having bugs in the camera driver, is maybe giving too much power to the camera or something. In other words I hope the software update hasn't caused an actual hardware issue that wont be fixable with another update.
I had this happen on an old old old webcam is why I suspect this...