I also have a similar problem. Macro pictures are just fine, but if I want to zoom on a distant object I only get unfocused pictures.
yesterday, i ordered a new camera module from the fairphone shop to replace the faulty one. i will post here my experience with the new one. will take a few days, though.
The FP2, like most smartphone cameras, only has a digital zoom and not a real optical one. So itās the same as taking a picture without zoom and then amplifing a detail. With a resolution of 8 megapixels just you canāt get a useful pictureā¦
youāre right, @Irina_Spitznagel, but i can clearly see a difference in zooming āqualityā between the cameras in FP1 and FP2. also your kind hint to use Camera ZOOM FX doesnāt make much difference on the performance of the FP2 camera, unfortunately. anyway, if i were to again take a picture of the full moon over pico volcano/aƧores iād rather take a real cameraā¦
taken in 2014 with FP1
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Waou! Beautiful photo!!!
I just missed being able to record a piano concert of my daughter because the camera would not focus!!! 
Iām very angry and disappointedā¦ (I also have hot battery and low battery life and reboots)ā¦
My FP2 is a disaster!!!
sorry to hear that but i understand your anger, the pictures from the concert would have been nice to have as a memory. my FP2 is a fine device except for the camera issue.
thx for your appreciation of the picture (taken with FP1)!
I think Iāll go back once more to my FP1ā¦
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Better to fix the camera perhaps? Iām sure they will do it for free.
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I have the same problem too, very difficult to focus with the camera 
Donāt apologize. Great photos. Thanks for your contribution!
I could never do such a pic with mine 
Well. Got my FP2 back from service today.
Good thing: The camera works now pretty good:
But.
This is how i got my FP2 back:
Cover was not put on properly, I guess with brute force - which caused the broken frame of the display module. (Over the left blue bracket, you can also see some traces on the display itself)
So all in all: I had to send in my whole, functioning FP2 instead of only my camera module because of āwe would like to diagnoseā¦ā. Had no phone for over a week, got it back damaged ā¦
If you assume some frustration here, you might not be wrong.
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Ouch.
Hope support gets back to you quickly about that. Theyāll probably be interested to know about the performance of their repair centreā¦
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After reading bfbās story, Iām glad that I got the chance to replace the module myself. Focussing now works like it should.
Iāve made pictures right before and after swapping the camera.
Before:
After:
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curious question: how is the performance now with zooming-in on distant objects? (im still waiting for my replacement camera module, should arrive soon). thx in advance for your reply
The Fairphone only has a digital zoom - as most (or even all?) smartphones. No optical system to change the focal length. A digital zoom is merely enlarging a cropped part of the image without gathering more information, so it can only get worse in terms of resolution (and noise, artefacts etc. as these get enlarged, too).
Iāve never used a digital zoom because of the stated point. I guess the digital zoom of the Fairphone is as unsatisfactory as every other digital zoom.
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sure, iām aware of that. however, i experienced something that i never saw with the camera ofmy FP1: once you zoom-in at a distant object, the camera briefly shows the (expected) pixelated magnification and immediately turns to a completely blurred version when trying to focus. thatās kind of weird, right?
Sounds like the interpolation kicks in right after focussing. Iāve just tried the zoom with the stock camera app and Opencamera and it seems pretty pixelated to me. I can try to take a picture later.
I just noticed that everything in my previous post was already mentioned some time ago in this thread, so sorry for repeating.
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Here it comes - beautifully rendered 6.0x zoom with an almost impressionistic touch. In a very dull wayā¦
Tried several times with both Stock Camera and Opencamera.
To be honestā¦thatās pretty much what I always thought of digital zoom. Of course, it gets better with larger sensors, smarter algorithms and faster processors, but I still prefer optical zoom 
Update:
No response to my ticket so far, so i called them. The employee promised me to get replacement for me as fast as possible as this is a special case (damage by repair center), especially as I go abroad next week and need my phone till then.
Later, I got the instructions:
No, they wont ship a replacement display module, (they dont send displays without phone at all for some reasons). I have to send in my whole phone. Again. No āas fast as possibleā anymore. And of course not in time, so my trip will be without it.
So basically I had to unnecessarily send in a working phone for over a week instead of only a module. They damaged it so I again had to unnecessarily send it in, instead of only the module, all after I had to wait a month for response.
āYours to keepā. Sure.
I am usually not that into lamenting but I really feel twited now. Thx for nothing.
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