Taking screenshots depends entirely on the device you have in your hands. I’m going to tell you how it’s done on the most common ones, with the tricks and problems I’ve come across.
? Android Phones
Here it’s more of a mess because each brand sometimes comes up with its own method.
- The method that almost always works is pressing the power button (or side button) and the volume down button at the same time. If the phone vibrates or makes a photo sound, you’ve got it. The screenshot is saved automatically in the Gallery or in the Photos app, in a folder called “Screenshots”.
- The exceptions:
- Some older Samsungs, which had a physical home button, used Home + Power.
- On some Sony phones, you have to hold down the power button until a menu appears and choose “Take screenshot”.
- Many brands (Xiaomi, Huawei) also include a screenshot button in the notification panel that you pull down from the top of the screen.
- A useful trick (if your Android is fairly new): after taking a normal screenshot, sometimes the “Capture more” option appears. This lets you take a long screenshot of an entire web page or conversation as you scroll. It doesn’t work in all apps, but when it does, it’s great.
? iPhone and iPad
Apple keeps it simpler, but you need to know which buttons your model has.
- If your iPhone doesn’t have the round home button (iPhone X and later): press and release quickly the side button (the one on the right) and the volume up button at the same time. You’ll see a flash on the screen.
- If your iPhone does have the home button (older models): use the power button (top or side) and the home button at the same time.
- Right after capturing, a thumbnail of the photo appears briefly in the corner. If you tap it, you can crop it or draw on it instantly. If you don’t want to edit it, it disappears on its own and is saved in the Photos app, in the “Screenshots” album.
? Windows Computers
Windows gives you a thousand options, but only two are really worth it.
- To save the screenshot directly as a file: press the key with the Windows logo + PrtScn (sometimes “PrtSc”). The screen will flash. The image is saved automatically in the “Pictures > Screenshots” folder.
- The best tool, for capturing just a portion: press Windows + Shift + S. The screen darkens and you can select an area with the mouse. That image is copied to the clipboard so you can paste it (Ctrl+V) wherever you want: in an email, in Paint, in a Word document.
Forget about this (it only causes confusion): The key “PrtSc” alone doesn’t save anything, it only copies a picture of the entire screen to internal memory. Then you have to open Paint or Word and paste it to see it or save it. It’s an unnecessary extra step.
? Apple Computers (macOS)
Macs are very straightforward with keyboard shortcuts.
- To capture the entire screen: Cmd (⌘) + Shift + 3. The image is saved directly to the desktop.
- To capture an area you choose: Cmd (⌘) + Shift + 4. The cursor turns into a crosshair. Select the area and release. It also goes to the desktop.
- A useful detail: if after pressing Cmd + Shift + 4 you press the spacebar, you can capture a specific window (like the browser window) and it will even add a nice shadow.
? My opinion on what’s worth it
- On mobile, the physical button method is king. Palm gestures (which some Samsungs have) or voice assistants sound good, but in practice they aren’t as fast or reliable.
- On Windows, the Win + Shift + S combination is the most useful in the system. You forget about cropping afterward and it’s much faster than opening the “Snipping Tool” from the Start menu.
- If you take screenshots very often and need to edit them, organize them, or upload them to the cloud right away, then it might make sense to look for a specific app like “Easy Screenshot” for Android. But for normal use, the tools that already come installed are more than enough.
