Hi guys, just to cut to the chase, ''are 12 euro replacement cameras for sony z3s fake? clones? chines replicas? are they any good?,
I didn't really know where to ask this but thought some of the linux heads might be a place to start.
the camera was water damaged, I took it out and gave it a good working over and it focuses as it should again, but I think some of the lenses coatings may have been affected the images ant as god as i say online,
and while I'm gluing the back on again i don't want to have to strip it again in a few weeks if it gives up on me,
12 euro, too good to be true?,

Hmmmm... everything breaks Sean. The question you're asking is how soon it will break. Probably sooner than one you spent more money on but if you are routinely getting "water damage", the fact it's cheap makes it worthwhile (all laptop cameras I'm familiar with will crap out in water, regardless of what you pay for them).
If you want don't want to work on it again, and you aren't planning to take your laptop snorkeling, don't buy the cheap one because it will, probably, bugger up sooner than an expensive one.
However if you don't mind tinkering with your electronics... twelve bucks is damn nice price for any kind of working camera.

Its an expieria z3 phone, my main concern is image qualety as that was a big selling point for me, ps it was a dud i got stuck with off ebay china i would have liken to take it swiming but seems like sonys water proof advertising campain was a bit of a scam as they nolonger recomend submerging it in any water thanks for the replie dijetol

It's in a phone?
I thought it was a laptop... which opened some questions when we reached the topic of snorkeling with it, however I'm here to help, not judge.
OK, that makes a lot more sense but unfortunately, I don't know nothin' 'bout no phones... still, for 12 bucks (Euros are just like Dollars except for the funny colors, right?) how crappy can it be?