Your Apple iPhone has a camera, my iPhone has a camera, so to everyone An iPhone has to have a camera, right? A mistake, as an image posted on Reddit shows.
Originally uploaded to the Weakly Interesting subreddit (somewhat ironic considering it’s actually very interesting), this is a photo of an aged and somewhat battered Apple iPhone. But before you think you’re looking at the launch logo of screenthis is actually the back of the phone and is missing the camera entirely.
According to the author of the post, the unusual iPhone is owned by a friend who works at a nuclear power plant, where cameras are not allowed on site. More details about the phone’s possible origins emerged when the post appeared on the r/iPhone subreddit, where several replies indicated that the camera-less iPhone was not made by Apple, but was modified by a third-party company for use by companies and personnel at work. places and places where security is paramount.
While obviously rare, this isn’t the first time a photo of an iPhone without a camera has been uploaded to Reddit. A few years ago, a Redditor found a similar model for sale at a used smartphone store in Dubai, and some responses claimed that the iPhone models without a camera were used by the military. Elsewhere in the responses, several claimed that Apple would also at one time sell modified versions of the iPhone without a camera to certain government institutions.
Other interesting details from the responses to the two images include information that suggests the entire camera system has been removed, from hardware to software, which would likely ensure that it’s impossible for anyone to add a camera. Logically, since these devices are for use where cameras aren’t allowed, there won’t be a camera on the front of the phone either.
Where does an iPhone come from without a camera? A company called NonCam is mentioned in responses to the Reddit post, and sure enough, its (very slow) website lists conversion kits for several old iPhone models — including the iPhone SE, iPhone 8, and iPhone 5S — to get rid of the camera for $250. It also sells pre-modified versions for more than $1,000. The website says its customers include the military, oil and gas industry and even education.
Delving into the world of camera-less iPhone models takes us to Singapore, where a company called Mister Mobile provides more information on who might want to do just that. It said the practice was common for residents starting their national service in the military, where camera phones are banned. The way it modifies the phone is reversible, allowing residents to take their own phone with them, along with all their contacts and data, and then return it the way Apple intended after their military service is over.
This is a much cheaper service than NonCam as well. If you take your iPhone 14 Pro to Mister Mobile to have the camera removed, it will cost you the local equivalent of $28, but it seems less “final” than NonCam’s service. The company doesn’t just work with Apple phones either, and lists camera removal as an option for most major device makers, including Samsung, Sony, Google and OnePlus.
The next time you come across an iPhone without one of the best features you’d buy the phone for, you now know where it might have come from — and why a company might perform a “camera ectomy” on Apple’s best.
Editors’ recommendations
