Xperia mini pro - SK17i - mango - Front camera (option) missing

[TheMadScientist]

Okay. So, I've always been on the stock GB rom it shipped with and had no issues. I decide to update to ICS but since the update doesn't show up in PC companion or Update Service or OTA, I get flashtool and the stock .431 ftf and flash my mini pro (SI 1249-0751) to ICS (and also plug in a fresh new 32GB microSDHC card to celebrate). A bit laggy, crashes of the contact viewer when searching throught the dialpad, but that's okay, I can use a different launcher (Zeam) and dialer app (Dialer One).

But when I open the camera app and try to take a picture with the front camera ...

... there's no option. It's gone.

Another camera app, no front camera.

Skype recognises only the rear camera. No front camera.

I open the service menu (*#*#SERVICE#*#* i.e *#*#7378423#*#*) and test the secondary camera, and it says "This device does not support the function". The primary works fine. All other supported features work fine. Light sensor (next to the front cam) responds too. (But the Proximity switch doesn't. Not sure if it should. Perhaps that could hint at a hardware problem with the connections from the bottom half to the top slider part.)

I scout the forums and find that there's some some strange relationship between the SD card and the front camera for the Ray (or some other device) . With the old SD card, still no luck.

I downgrade to GB. Still not working. Front cam missing.

I unlock the bootloader and install a custom rom (CyanogenMod 9.0.0 Stable mango). Still not working. Front cam missing.

I reinstall GB, relock the bootloader in the hope of an OTA update and do finally get one (to ICS). I update it. Still not working. Front cam missing.

I don't think it's (gulp) hardware. There hasn't been any drop onto a hard surface. And Seychelles doesn't have any Sony service centers.

So, now, I'm here.

Anybody with similar issues ? Ideas ? Suggestions ?

Anyone with a ... fix ?

Anyone ?

Please.

Help..

[alienmi]

I realized today that front cam  and prox. sensor is missing after factory reset. Its a" feature" for service the device or what? I use it only as home phone for keyboard but it still. 

[alexrx]

Hi there,

Repair your software with Sony Update Service

Perhaps it will solve your problem, otherwise take your phone to Sony repair center(or some other if the phone is not under warranty).

Cheers.

[DaveBee]

Hello everyone,

Well... the problem with my mini pro is due to the broken ribbon flexible cable which slides between the two blocks of the phone 😕

[MEXICORROSIVO]

I'm having the EXACT same problem.

UPDATED THE FW TO ICS-> LOST PROXIMITY SENSOR AND FRONT CAMERA.

You're saying that the "ribon" between screen and the keypad broke. It "casualy" happened to me. Kind of. It were something like a cassette tape, metallic, and it poped up whenever I used the keypad. A pair of days it finally fell off.

You're saying it was IT, but how do you know? Have you repaired it yet? What did you do?

[SonyInsider]

There seems to be a major compatibility problem of the Android soft and Xperia hardware, as I read through multiplying fora across the web... (see xperia z etc...) Same problems for me... I did a factory reset and the problem remains, as many users before me indicated already. I read a reply of a sony employee, somewhere on this site, advising to send the phone back for service. So I decided to do so, also to help sony to find out what the problem might be. I recently got a mail from the phone-shop that my phone is out of warranty (always the same in our society, after 2 years your just.) and a decent factory reset would cost me 106 €. (+/-half of phone-price) There is only one problem, the Belgian law states that if a problem is due to a failure/ lack at production, the producer remains responsible no matter what the guarantee says. Pffff... Not sure what I'm gonna do yet... For that price I have a new phone and could meanwhile reinstall an OS myself... I understand that Sony doesn't want to take full responsibility for the Android system, but why blocking the bootloader then ? 

[vikuz]

Yep, same trouble for me with the same model of phone.

And same bus cable broken on the back where the phone slides, so I guess that is the reason for which the frontal camera doesn´t work anymore.

[anwar19khan]

Thnx bro