How to take screenshots with iPhone and Android phones

There are many reasons why you might want to take a quick screenshot with your phone. Maybe it's to post a cool article on Instagram or document the latest in fashion to help you dress better, or perhaps to archive a wonderful text conversation you've had with friends or family .

Whatever the reason, there are several simple ways to capture your iPhone. ($ 1,000 at Amazon) or Android screen. Stretch these fingers because there will be many buttons that you will press (real buttons, not figured).

You may already know how to make a screenshot, but it turns out that there are several ways to capture what is displayed on your phone's screen, especially on Android. If you have a Motorola phone or a Samsung phone, you have not only two different ways to take a picture of your screen, but also fun and interesting ways to do it without even pressing a button.

If you want to follow step by step the creation of screenshots, watch the video below: How to take screenshots on your iPhone or Android phone.

How to make screenshots on iPhone X and 11

Let's start with iPhones without home button: the X, XS, XR and the three new iPhone 11 phones. If you have one of these phones (or pre-ordered), it's likely that you have unwittingly taken many screenshots by accidentally overwriting the combination of the winning button. But here's how to do a screen capture on purpose.

Simultaneously press the power button and the volume increase button. You need a Goldilocks press for this. If you make one that is not too short, nothing will happen or you may trigger Siri. If you make one that is too long, the power off screen and SOS will appear. I timed it in an unscientific way and you have to press a 0.9 second button to trigger a screen capture.

When you take a screenshot, you see the screen flashing and you hear the sound of the shutter. A miniature version of your screen capture floats to the bottom left of your screen. You can press it and switch to Annotation mode to crop, edit or add text right away, without having to access the Photos application beforehand, which is fantastic.

If you do not want to change your screen capture, you can simply drag the mini version or wait for it to disappear by itself after a few seconds. By default, your screen capture will be saved in the Photos application.

In iOS 13, when you capture a web page in Safari, you have the option to capture the entire page or whatever was on the screen.

How to take screenshots on iPhone 8 and earlier

If your iPhone has a home button, there is a different way to take a screenshot. Simultaneously press the Home button and the Sleep / Wake button. A mini version of your screen capture will appear at the bottom left of the screen.

You can tap it to edit or share it immediately.

How to make screenshots on Android smartphones

Android has many possibilities to capture the content of your screen. The universal method is to simultaneously hold the power button and the volume down button. The screen will flash and a framed version of your screen capture will appear on the screen.

Depending on your phone, an editing window may appear. Otherwise, screen capture will disappear from the screen. Screenshots are saved in the Google Photos app or in your phone's native gallery app.

Motorola's three-finger touch method

If you have a recent Motorola phone, like the excellent Moto G7you can use the power button and volume technique or a three-finger method. This last technique turns out to be one of my favorite ways to take a screen shot because there really is a Star Trek atmosphere at the neck of Spock-Vulcan that nips the neck.

To enable three-finger screen capture, go to the Moto app or, if you are using an older Motorola phone, look for the Moto Actions menu in Settings. Light up Three finger catch. You can tap the description to bring up a quick animated tutorial on its use.

Now, whenever you want to take a screenshot, just tap the screen with three fingers at the same time. The screen will flash and a screen capture editor will appear.

Samsung's technique for karate

Perhaps the most interesting way to take a screenshot is from Samsung. You can of course use the Android system with the power and volume buttons. But there are two other options, one of them involving the use of your palm – no kidding. the Galaxy Note 10 even has a new tool to record your screen.

The method of the palm is to hold your hand in a "karate" posture (the edge of your hand is therefore perpendicular to the screen) and to slide the side of your hand on the screen. To activate, go to Settings and press the magnifying glass icon. In the search field, type the word "palm" and you will see a menu option Palm drag to capture appear.

Press on Palm drag to capture and you will be brought to the Movements and gestures m e n u. From there you can find Palm drag to capture in the list and a button to activate it on the right. If you press the description, you will be guided through a quick tutorial.

I admit that this gesture is not as reliable as the power button and volume, but you can do it with one hand just by touching the screen of your phone.

Samsung's Edge Panel allows you to take accurate screen shots

By the way, Samsung did not stop on the palm of the hand, because in the Edge Panel on Galaxy phones, you can also take screenshots, but with more precision.

To activate the dashboard, go to Settings and press the magnifying glass icon. In the search field, type the word "edge" and you will see the "Dashboard" menu option. Press on Dashboard and you will be taken to the Edge Panels setup screen.

There is a blue band with an on / off button to activate the dashboards. Under this button is a gallery of various dashboards. Scroll to find the one called Smart Select. Press the radio button to activate the Smart Select menu.

When you want to capture the screen of your Galaxy phone more precisely, open the panel by deliberately sweeping from the right edge of the screen to the left. With the dashboard open, slide your finger across the various panels until you get to Smart Select. From there, you can select a rectangular capture and oval capture or animation capture that allows you to create a GIF file.

After selecting the way you want to capture the screen, a box or oval will appear. You can resize and reposition the tool on the part of the screen you want to capture, and then press Completed. From there, you are brought into a screen capture editor.

You now know how to take screenshots on virtually every phone you can imagine. If you like Samsung's Edge Panel, check out our story on how to create GIFs with the dashboard.