After a little over a year of use, I noticed my iPhone XS Max camera started producing photos with blurry dots... characteristic of dust on the sensor. At best it’s mildly distracting against a uniform background but it can also become downright intrusive when light hits the lens the right way.

This seems to be a pretty widespread problem based on some Google searches, and consistent with what I found in my searches, Apple was less than helpful... out-of-warranty screen and battery replacements carry a tolerable price tag but a camera repair falls into the catch all category of “other” repairs for which they charge $549 and would just give me a refurb rather than fixing my unit.

So after some further research, I found myself doing something I swore I’d never do as a true geek... I paid a visit to Geek Squad at Best Buy. They’re now an Apple-certified repair shop and replaced the camera for $79 in less than an hour... less than Apple would have charged under AppleCare+ at an Apple Store.

Figured I’d post this in case it saves anyone else from hours of frustration or an overpriced repair for this issue (or really any other out-of-warranty issue where Apple’s direct support is patently ridiculous). The “geniuses” aren’t the only option and despite Apple’s near-monopoly when it comes to its hardware, Apple-authorized repair shops offer an independent menu of services and pricing.