W520 webcam not working

[ph-klein]

Hi everyone,

i recently bought my W520 and everything works just fine - except for the internal webcam.

I installed the drivers (current version) from the Lenovo web site but the webcam won't turn on. The green just wouldn't turn on and when I press Fn+F6 the communication tool shows up without any webcam video. Same thing for skype or any other webcam tool.

Sometimes after booting it works for a few seconds but then the image freezes and it won't start again until after several system restarts.

As indicated on google I installed the generic Microsoft driver but that does not seem to solve the problem.

Does anyone know what to do? Your help is much appreciated!

Regards, Phil

System Details:

Thinkpad W520 (4276), Core i7-2760QM

Windows 7 64 Bit Professional

[tanujhanda Retired Partner]

Hello ph-klein and welcome to community,

Kindly uninstall the installed camera driver and software then restart the laptop, update the BIOS

BIOS Update Bootable CD

README for BIOS Update Bootable CD

"OR"

Windows BIOS Update Utility

Then install ThinkVantage Communications Utility and after this install Integrated Camera Driver

Best Regards,

Tanuj

[ph-klein]

Tanuj,

thank you for the welcome and your reply. I tried to update the BIOS but the Windows tool told me that no update was required. I checked the BIOS screen, installed version is 8BET56WW (1.36) which is the current version on the Lenovo web site. 

Attached you find a photo taken during one of the short moments the webcam is actually working. I'm pretty much concerned about the color errors. Might this be a hardware fault?

Best regards,

Phil

[tanujhanda Retired Partner]

Hi Phill,

Can you reinstall the Windows and check else if the laptop is in warranty then you need to contact the support center.

Best Regards,

Tanuj

[ColonelONeill]

I'd try a bootable Ubuntu CD. If it has drivers for the webcam, then you can confirm whether or not it's a hardware issue.

[ph-klein · Accepted solution]

I tried ubuntu live and the webcam didn't work either.

Today I had a remote assistance session with the Lenovo support and they confirmed a hardware fault. Until this morning I was still hoping it was a software error but now I have to get the webcam replaced  Thank you for all your replies anyway.

Regards, Phil

[colerutstein]

I have tried all of these steps and my computer still refuses to recognize the webcam.