Photos taken on a dirty phone camera will be fuzzy. To guarantee your photos are clear and sharp, follow these instructions for cleaning the phone’s camera lens.
All of us have been there. In order to acquire a clearer shot when you go to take a quick photo with your phone, you grab your shirt, blow on the lens, and rub the camera. There are better ways to clean your camera lens, and while the odd rub with a soft piece of clothing shouldn’t hurt, here’s how.
Four Ways to clean the camera lens on your mobile phone
1. Use a cleaning pen to remove dust
A simple brush with a cleaning pen or any comparable soft brush will generally suffice to clean a dirty phone camera lens. There are many different sizes and types of cleaning pens. While some have bigger, fluffier brush ends, others have more delicate brush ends. Put the dust to rest by using the proper size.
A clean, soft makeup brush will work just as well as a cleaning pen if you don’t want to spend the money.
2. Use a microfiber cloth to buff away smudges
You’ll need to gently rub your camera lens with a microfiber cloth if it’s blurry because it’s covered in fingerprints. A microfibre cloth can remove smudges without leaving lint behind, in contrast to tissues that can leave dust particles on your lens.
If you don’t have a microfiber cloth, any soft cloth that hasn’t been washed in fabric softener will work similarly if you don’t have one (fabric softener can leave streaks on your camera lens).
3. Use a lens wipe for more stubborn grime
You should attempt a lens wipe if you’ve been handling your camera lens after eating chicken wings or if it’s just too nasty to rub with a cloth. Lens wipes are made more effective against tenacious oil and filth by being wet with lens cleaning.
Regular wet wipes frequently contain softeners that will make your camera lens even greasier, so avoid using them on your lens.
4. Use a lens cleaner or a homemade version
Last but not least, if you don’t have a lens wipe, you can apply a homemade or specialised lens cleaning on the corner of a soft tissue or microfiber cloth. Most alcohol-based lens cleaners are diluted alcohol solutions.
You may produce your own lens cleaner at home by combining distilled water and 70% isopropyl alcohol in a 50:50 ratio. Avoid using tap water if you want a finish that won’t smear.
How to remove condensation from your phone’s camera lens
Not all smartphones, particularly those that are not flagship models, have an IP rating. When a camera lens is internally foggy, moisture has somehow managed to get past the camera housing and accumulated inside the lens.
You’ll need to dry out your phone, which will allow the moisture to leave, to get rid of this fog. Placing your phone in an airtight container with silica gel packets or uncooked rice is the simplest way to do this. Your phone will become dry after using these products for about 24 hours.
It’s better to turn off your phone while it’s enjoying a nice dry rice bath just in case the moisture has gotten deeper than you believe and could interfere with the internal circuits of your gadget.
Extreme temperatures can harm your phone more than they can help, even while it may be tempting to place it on the radiator or blow it with a hairdryer. You should take your phone to a repair shop if the camera lens is still cloudy after an overnight soak in rice or silica gel. We advise against disassembling your phone to clean the condensation off the inside of the camera lens unless you are confident in your abilities (and depending on your phone, this could even require disassembly of the camera module itself, in which case putting it back together becomes significantly more difficult).
How to protect your phones camera lens
It’s worth looking into lens covers and the proper screen protector for your phone to safeguard the front camera if you want to preserve the camera lens on your phone in perfect condition for as long as possible. Your camera lens will be shielded from scratches by lens covers that adhere to the glass of the lens. Their biggest appeal is that you can quickly replace them, even though they will ultimately get dirty as well.
A raised case will help to keep the glass of your camera lens away from rough surfaces if you don’t want to use a lens protector but still want to keep the lens on your phone from getting scratched.
How not to clean your phone’s camera lens
After discussing how to clean your camera lens and remove moisture from the glass, it’s time to discuss how not to clean the camera on your phone.
1. Don’t use domestic glass cleaner
Windex and other household glass cleaners are frequently too abrasive for the delicate coating on your phone’s camera lens. Avoid them and only use products made specifically for lenses.
2. Don’t use rough cloths
Clothes made of microfiber are soft for a reason. You are more likely to scratch your camera lens if you use a rougher cloth. This also applies to wearing filthy clothing. Grit that has been trapped in dirty clothing may later rub off onto your camera lens.
3. Don’t use tap water
Last but not least, even though purchasing distilled water is a hassle, doing so is necessary if you want a finish that is streak-free. Tap water is tainted with minerals and other contaminants, which can leave stains or residue on your screen or on your camera lens, giving the impression that it is still unclean.
If in doubt, let the professionals do it
You may have noticed that we haven’t talked about cleaning the inside of the camera lens on your phone, and there’s a good reason for that. We strongly advise taking your camera lens to a professional if it has to be cleaned on the inside. Opening the camera housing on your phone will render it waterproof and may unleash a veritable bucket of worms. If unsure, have someone with experience handle it. Unfortunately, condensation can accumulate even on IP-rated phones. Depending on the specifics of the issue, the best course of action may be to leave the device alone or send it in for service.Without understanding all of the relevant details, giving advice becomes more difficult, thus we suggest consulting an expert.
