Home Resource Webcam Problem Dell Laptop Camera Not Working? 6 Tips to Easily Fix It

Dell Laptop Camera Not Working? 6 Tips to Easily Fix It

Your Dell laptop camera not working when you want to record, stream, or chat. This article explains how to fix your Dell webcam problem step by step.
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Dereje GetieLast Updated: April 29, 2024
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Dell laptop built-in webcams can be used to chat, stream, produce video, and so on. Unfortunately, your webcam may stop working and disturb the chat or business that you may have with your friends or partners.

I myself faced webcam problems two times on my Dell laptop computer. The first one was when I was conducting an online meeting using Google Meet, and the other was during a scholarship grant interview using the Zoom application. So, before conducting this kind of promising issue, you have to check every detail of your dell webcam.

Fix the Webcam Not Working on the Dell Laptop

The following 6 tips may be helpful if your Dell camera doesn’t work.

1. Check The Cover of Your Webcam.

Webcam covers are used to protect you from unwanted recordings and protect your webcam from physical damage. So make sure that you uncover your webcam. Sometimes, you might forget to uncover it before you start a video call using Zoom.

Fix Dell Camera Not Working - Uncover Your Webcam
Fix Dell Camera Not Working – Uncover Your Webcam

2. Allow Apps to Access Dell Camera

Microsoft is providing the mandate to the user to choose which application has to access your camera. The app that you are using right now may lose the permission to access your webcam. So, you need to offer permission for the app in your privacy setting.

Here is the procedure on how to do it?

Step 1: on your Windows search bar, type setting to get the Setting App.

Fix Dell Camera Problem - Go to Settings
Fix Dell Camera Problem – Go to Settings

Step 2: Go to Privacy and click it.

Fix Dell Camera Problem - Go to Privacy
Fix Dell Camera Problem – Go to Privacy

Step 3: under the App permissions category, Click on Camera.

Fix Dell Camera Problem - Go to Camera
Fix Dell Camera Problem – Go to Camera

Step 4: when you click Camera, the following window pops up, and press the toggle switch.

Fix Dell Camera Problem - Allow Apps to Access Dell Camera
Fix Dell Camera Problem – Allow Apps to Access Dell Camera

As shown above, the camera access is turned off, and hence I can’t use my webcam for any kind of application. Therefore I have to toggle the button to turn it on. To do this click on the toggle button as shown above in the figure.

Then after it becomes turned on, your apps get permission to access your camera. The toggle switch now becomes turned On with red color as shown below.

Fix Dell Camera Problem - Allow Apps to Access
Fix Dell Camera Problem – Allow Apps to Access

If your camera is turned on from the beginning, make sure that the specific App that you want to use is granted to access the camera. You can choose among Apps to allow or lose the permission to access your webcam. The following figure shows the allowed and protected Apps to use my camera.

Fix Dell Camera Problem - Allow Access to Camera
Fix Dell Camera Problem – Allow Access to Camera

As shown above, four Apps are allowed to access my camera, whereas two Apps (Adobe Photoshop express and Desktop App Web Viewer) are denied. This is my interest on my laptop, so everyone has the mandate to choose among different Apps.

3. Disable and Enable Dell Webcam Driver

Sometimes problems may not go far as you expect, but easy steps can provide solutions perfectly. So your webcam problem can be fixed easily by disabling the device and enabling it back.

Step 1: on the Windows search bar, type device manager, and click on the icon of Device manager

Fix Dell Camera Problem - Device Manager
Fix Dell Camera Problem – Device Manager

Step 2: After clicking the device manager icon, you will get the following window, then go to the Camera option, and finally make a right-click on your camera (integrated webcam).

Fix Dell Camera Not Working - Find Webcam Driver
Fix Dell Camera Not Working – Find Webcam Driver

Step 3: Now there is the deal, after making a right-click on your integrated webcam, you will get three options that you can operate i.e. update its driver, disable the deice and Uninstall the device. So, choose Disable device option.

Fix Dell Camera Not Working - Disable Dell Built-in Camera
Fix Dell Camera Not Working – Disable Dell Built-in Camera

Step 4: here, a warning window will pop up, and you have to click Yes.

Fix Dell Camera Not Working - Confirm Disable Camera
Fix Dell Camera Not Working – Confirm Disable Camera

Step 5: Repeat the last three steps, and this time you have to click on Enable device.

Fix Dell Camera Not Working - Enable Camera
Fix Dell Camera Not Working – Enable Camera

4. Reinstall Your Dell Webcam Driver

If all of the above solutions failed to fix the problem that you are facing, you need to reinstall the webcam driver via Device Manager. The necessary steps here are quite similar to that of solution 3, but this time you need to click on Uninstall the device.

Fix Dell Camera Not Working - Enable Camera
Fix Dell Camera Not Working – Enable Camera

Now, a warning window will pop up, and click Uninstall.

Fix Dell Camera Not Working - Confirm Uninstall Driver
Fix Dell Camera Not Working – Confirm Uninstall Driver

After the Uninstall process finishes, you might be wondering what actions you are going to take. Easy saying, restart your computer, and it will automatically fix the missed webcam driver. Done!

5. Update Webcam Driver on Dell Laptop

The last and most promising method to fix your dell webcam problem is to update the driver. In solution 5, we have seen how to reinstall drivers, but the systems use the same old version of the driver. Your webcam may not function at all if you are using an outdated version of the driver. Moreover, the App that you are using for video calls (let’s say “Zoom”) might need a webcam with the updated driver, and hence download and install the updated version.

Where and how to download the Dell webcam driver?

You may be wondering where to download the wanted webcam driver. Here is the kicker! Go to the Dell support website (https://www.dell.com/support/home/en-us?app=drivers), and you will get the following window. Enter your product identifier and hit the search button.

Fix Dell Camera Not Working - Download Camera Driver
Fix Dell Camera Not Working – Download Camera Driver

How to know my product Identifier?

Dell uses product identifiers like Service Tag, Express Service Code, or Serial Number to access product information

  • Service Tag is a seven alphanumeric code,
  • Express Service Code is a 10 to 11 – digit numeric version of a Service Tag.
  • The Service Tag or Express Service Code or MFG date label is located either on the top, side, or on the back panel of the computer.

The below figure shows how I can find my product identifiers on the back of my laptop.

Dell Camera Not Working - Get Identifiers of Your Dell Laptop
Dell Camera Not Working – Get Identifiers of Your Dell Laptop

After you hit the search button, you will get the option to download the driver

1. To find the driver automatically, click Check for Updates.

Camera Driver - Check for Update
Camera Driver – Check for Update

Then the following window will pop up, and download the dell SupportAssistant so that it will detect your driver automatically. Click Download.

Detect Dell Camera Driver
Detect Dell Camera Driver

2. If you want to search your driver manually, fill in the necessary information.

  • download type (select driver).
  • operating system ( windows7/8/10, 64/32bit).
Search Dell Camera Driver Manually
Search Dell Camera Driver Manually

Then go to the driver that you want to download, and click Download.

Download Dell Camera Driver
Download Dell Camera Driver

If your problem persists after implementing the above solutions, your PC needs maintenance. Go to your nearby computer hardware maintenance shop.

6. Disable Anti-Virus Software Temporarily

Here is the thing, your anti-virus software may block your webcam not to taking any action, and hence your camera will not operate. Sometimes, your anti-virus restricts your installed apps from using your camera. Therefore, you have to disable your antivirus temporarily and try your webcam again if it works. I myself, am using Avast antivirus, and below is the procedure you have to follow to disable it (this time I am interested to disable it for 10 minutes).

Fix Dell Camera Not Working - Disable Anti-Virus Software
Fix Dell Camera Not Working – Disable Anti-Virus Software

What If Your Dell Camera Still Not Working?

If the webcam cannot work after you’ve tried all tips above, you may have to use an alternative or buy a new webcam to start your video call.

  • If your audiences are waiting for you to join the video call, you can integrate your iPhone or Android phone to be an HD webcam for your Dell laptop. These can be easily done with some free webcam apps. Or you can use your smartphone to start the call since most video call platforms have mobile versions.
  • You can buy an external HD webcam for your dell computer from eBay or Amazon

More Articles about Webcam Problems

This article is originally published on May 12, 2022, and updated on April 29, 2024
Author

Dereje Getie

Dereje Derib is a technical content writer at FineShare, as well as an electrical engineer teaching courses at a university. He knows webcam and remote work quite well.

HomeResource Webcam Problem Dell Laptop Camera Not Working? 6 Tips to Easily Fix It

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