How to take an android screenshot directly from Windows PC

There are many ways to take screenshots on an Android phone. The most common way to do that is to simultaneously press the power and volume down buttons. However, sometimes, we need to copy the captured screenshots to our computer, for further editing and sharing. In that case, it would be more convenient if you take an Android screenshot from PC, and save it there. This method of taking screenshots is also helpful when you’ve broken hardware buttons.

This post will show you 2 methods to directly take an Android screenshot on your PC.

Method 1: Use AirDroid app to take Android screenshot from a PC

AirDroid app comes with a lot of features to control your device on your PC. Here, we’ll use this app for taking Android phone screenshots on PC. Just follow these simple steps below.

Step 1: Download and install AirDroid: Remote access & File on your Android phone.

Step 2: Launch the app, create an account, and verify it through an email. Then, sign in with your account.

Step 3: Tap the ‘Me’ tab at the lower-right of the screen. Go to ‘Security & Remote Features’ > ‘View Only Mode’. Enable permissions for remotely review your phone screen on PC.

Step 4: Make sure your Android and PC both are connected to the same WiFi network.

Step 5: On your PC, open a web browser, and visit web.airdroid.com. You’ll see a QR code option.

Step 6: On your phone, tap ‘Transfer’ tab, then select ‘AirDroid Web’ > ‘Scan QR Code’ option. Now, simply scan the QR code given on your computer screen.

Step 7: Confirm Sign in request on your Android. Now you successfully connected your phone with your PC.

Step 8: Once connected, you can use the ‘Screenshot’ option on the web version of AirDroid, in order to take screenshots. Captured images will be saved in the ‘Downloads’ folder on your computer.

Method 2: Grab Android screenshot to your computer via ADB

You can also easily use simple ADB commands to take a screenshot from your Android device and save it to your computer. I’m assuming that you have,

1. Enabled USB Debugging on your Android device.
2. Installed and set up ADB and Fastboot tools on your Windows computer.

Now, follow the steps below,

1. Connect your phone to the PC via USB cable, and accept USB Debugging access permission.
2. Go to the Android screen, of which you want to take a screenshot.
3. On your computer, open a command window. To take a screenshot, type this command “adb shell screencap -p /sdcard/screenshot.png”, and hit Enter on the keyboard. The captured screenshot will be stored directly in the internal storage of your phone.

Step 4: If you wish to copy the screenshot to your computer, enter this command, “adb pull /sdcard/screenshot.png”. Now the screenshot will be saved in platform-tools folder on your PC(where your adb components are stored).

Additionally, you can also record your Android screen from a PC, using these two commands,
“adb shell screenrecord /sdcard/screen.mp4”
“adb pull /sdcard/screen.mp4”

Now, you know the tricks for taking Android phone screenshot directly from your PC. Have any doubts or issues? Comment below.