Reports of a flaw in the iPhone 5's camera surfaced shortly after the handset launched just over a week ago. Users described seeing a purple haze or flare when snapping photos containing brightly lit objects like a lamp or the sun. Apple has officially been mum but they are at least aware of the issue according to an email sent to a concerned iPhone 5 user.
Gizmodo reader Matt Van Gastel received an email from AppleCare Support specialist "Deborah" informed him that this was normal behavior and can be adjusted by simply angling the phone's camera away from the bright light source when taking pictures.
The message reportedly came after a long support call with Apple where he was initially told that this was strange behavior and shouldn't be happening. His complaint was then escalated to a senior tech (Deborah) who again said it was odd and shouldn't be taking place. He supplied her with sample photos which were then sent off to the engineering team for further evaluation.
There's plenty of speculation as to what is causing the purple haze. Some believe it could be related to the sapphire glass covering the iPhone 5's camera although not everyone is convinced. Others seem to think its chromatic aberration - a type of optical distortion that occurs when the lens fails to capture all colors to the same convergence point. Still there are some that dismiss this as the culprit and instead suggest it's a limitation / defect with the camera's sensor or the lens.