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A developer fixed one of the worst things about the Nexus 5

Published Nov 12th, 2013 11:05AM EST
Nexus 5 Camera Fix

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Google finally launched its next-generation hero phone in late October and to be frank, it was worth the wait. BGR reviewed the Nexus 5 earlier this month and called it the only smartphone Android fans should care about this holiday season. At $349 with 16GB of storage and no service contract or $399 for the 32GB model, the Nexus 5 offers cutting-edge specs at a shockingly affordable price. The phone is hardly perfect though, and a few big problems mar an otherwise terrific experience. Battery life is definitely the worst thing about the Nexus 5, and that’s a difficult hurdle to overcome with a device that does not feature a removable battery. The other big strike against the phone is its awful camera, but Nexus 5 owners just got a helping hand from a third-party developer.

As noted by 9to5Google, an independent developer on the xda-developers forum named Jishnu Sir has created a camera patch. When the software is flashed to the Nexus 5, it reportedly improves the camera quality dramatically in the following areas:

  • Sound Recording now in Stereo with the secondary Mic.
  • Faster Focusing for the camera.
  • Front Camera also records 720P Videos@ 20 Mb/s.
  • Front camera Audio Bitrate@ 192000 Kb/s.
  • AntiBanding default set to 50Hz
  • Focus Range Adjusted.
  • Enhanced Smooth Zoom.
  • Turned Edge Enhancement ON.

That’s the good news. The bad news for many users is that this fix will require an unlocked bootloader and a few other warranty-voiding tweaks in order to be applied, so not everyone will want to partake.

On the bright side though, we have now confirmed that many of the problems with the Nexus 5’s camera can in fact be fixed with a software update, and it’s likely just a matter of time before Google issues some fixes. In the meantime, if you don’t mind some tinkering, the file you’ll need can be found through the source link below along with instructions on how to flash it.

Zach Epstein
Zach Epstein Executive Editor

Zach Epstein has been the Executive Editor at BGR for more than 10 years. He manages BGR’s editorial team and ensures that best practices are adhered to. He also oversees the Ecommerce team and directs the daily flow of all content. Zach first joined BGR in 2007 as a Staff Writer covering business, technology, and entertainment.

His work has been quoted by countless top news organizations, and he was recently named one of the world's top 10 “power mobile influencers” by Forbes. Prior to BGR, Zach worked as an executive in marketing and business development with two private telcos.