HP Spectre x360 Convertible 13-ae0xx: No Webcam Detected

[bsimon]

This computer has been great since the day we got it a couple years ago. It's my wife's computer, so she's not doing anything fancy on it. I setup HP Support Assistant and automatic Windows updates and she just surfs the internet. There's been no physical damage done to the machine as it's been sitting in the same place on the same table from the day we got it. She doesn't even use the touchscreen functionality - just a separate USB mouse.

Suddenly, she tried to activate the webcam and was told by the Windows 10 Camera app that "We can't find your camera; error 0xA00F4244". We manually ran updates on both of the aforementioned applications any nothing changed. I read through some of the articles I could find regarding HP laptop webcams randomly not working, but even a reset of Windows did not get it back to normal.

When I open Device Manager on her computer, there's no dropdown for Cameras as there is on my HP Spectre x360 Convertible 13-ap0xxx. There's also nothing in System Devices related to cameras, nor is there any in Imaging devices nor Sound, video and game controllers.

Both HP Support Assistant and Windows Updates say that her machine is up to date, but the webcam is still not being recognized by the system. Any assistance on this would be appreciated - this has been a wonderful computer for it to suddenly have an issue with a webcam, seemingly due to an update that was automatically pushed by HP or Microsoft.

[praveen196]

@bsimon Welcome to HP Community!

I understand that you are getting error 0xA00F4244 while launching the camera.

Do not worry. I will try to fix the issue.

On the right-hand side of the laptop, you will find the camera privacy switch. Please turn off. As shown below.

Then launch the camera and check.

Keep us posted,

If you would like to thank us for our efforts to help you, 

Give us a virtual high-five by clicking the 'Thumbs Up' icon below, followed by clicking on the "Accept as solution" on this post, 

Have a great day!

[bsimon]

This model does not have a privacy switch. I'm adding pictures of either side to the bottom of this post.

This seems to be something in the BIOS that's completely lost reference of the machine's webcam. I'm not quite sure when it started malfunctioning, but I've seen Windows or manufacturer updates interfere with functionality in the past.

[praveen196]

@bsimon

I understand your concerns.

Check if the webcam is detected in the device manager, if yes, you need to reinstall the drivers using the below steps,

• You might need to uninstall the webcam driver. To do this, open Device Manager > right-click on the device > select Properties > switch to Driver tab > click on Uninstall Device button.
• Restart your computer and then open Device Manager again and click on Action > Scan for hardware changes. (this would automatically reinstall the best drivers for it)

Once done, I suggest you install all the latest pending Windows updates as below and check if it helps.

1. Go to “settings” and click on “update and security”.
2. Under tab “Windows update”, click on the icon “check for updates”.
3. Then once you find the pending updates install it and check.

FOR DETAILS & FURTHER INSTRUCTIONS, USE THIS LINK: CLICK HERE

(By the end of this article all the issues should be resolved)

Have a nice day!!

[bsimon]

There’s nothing in device manager regarding any camera or imaging device as stated in the original post. Also, there’s no function in the BIOS to enable or disable the integrated webcam, as there should be. 

[praveen196]

@bsimon 

I understand your concern.

In that case, I would suggest you perform the system reset.

Windows 10 has a reset feature that repairs your computer by reinstalling the operating system. This feature is recommended for recovery because it reinstalls Windows 10 while either preserving your personal data and customizations or removing all your personal data.

You have a choice of two methods to reset your computer.

• If Windows 10 loads correctly, see the section titled Perform a Windows 10 system reset in Windows in this document.

• If Windows 10 does not start correctly, see the section titled Perform a Windows 10 system reset through Windows Recovery Environment in this document.

Have a nice day!!