1. ShootMe
ShootMe is simple application whose only function is to take a screenshot of the phone. Once installed, launch the app and “Accept” the licence agreement.
The screenshot server will attempt to start at this point.
A popup asking for “superuser” permissions will appear. You must “Allow” access for ShootMe to work.
Once you allow access the screenshot server will launch and you can start taking screenshots from your phone. Simply select “Hide” and use the appropriate mode (outlined below) to take your screenshot.
There are three screenshot capturing “modes”. To view the modes click the menu key on your phone.
The default screenshot capturing mode is the “Acceleration (Shake)” setting. On this setting you must physically “shake” the phone to take a screenshot. This is probably the easiest method, however in situations where the accelerometer on the phone will be used, it may be useful to select the “Audio (Shout)” mode.
On this setting you have to speak quite loudly at your phone to take a screenshot. In fact it was necessary for me to sustain a “shout” for about a second. Finally, if you want to take continuous screenshots of your phone the “Continuous (Movie)” mode is a good option.
In this mode, as soon as the screenshot server is started static images will be recorded onto your memory card. In my tests about 140 images were taken every minute (about 2-3 images a second). To turn of the ShootMe screenshot server launch ShootMe and select “Quit”. On the “Acceleration (Shake)” and “Audio (Shout)” modes the app will immediately quit. If you are using the “Continuous (Movie)” mode the app will attempt to convert the images and save them to the memory card. This can take some time.
Once you have finished taking the screenshots, browse to the “ShootMe” folder on your memory card to view the screenshots.
The screenshots can then be copied of your phone by connecting the phone to a computer.
2. PicMe
While ShootMe is an incredibly useful app, it’s biggest limitation is the fact that all the screenshots are saved on the phone’s memory card. This means that you have to connect your phone to your computer and manually copy the screenshot images. PicMe overcomes this limitation by allowing you to take screenshots remotely. The first thing that PicMe requires is a stable Wi-Fi connection. Although, the app works over mobile networks, for security reasons it is best to use the app over a Wi-Fi connection. Ensure, that both your computer and phone are on the same secured Wi-Fi network. After launching the app “Accept” the licence agreement and the screenshot server will start. Next, you have to give PicMe superuser permissions.
PicMe allows you to capture screenshots using your own computer. So, once the server starts you will be given an IP address and port to navigate to on your computer’s browser. The IP address will be your device’s IP on your local Wi-Fi network.
Using this information, launch your browser and simply type in the IP address and port number (as shown in the PicMe app) into your address bar.
The “Static” view is default and this shows you an unchanging view of what is on your phone’s screen. So, if you navigate away from the current page on your phone, the image on your browser would not change until you manually refresh the page. If you want an auto-updating view, click on “Live” and the page on the browser will refresh automatically as you use your phone.
The “Live” view also allows full interaction with your phone. You can select the “Back”, “Menu”, “Home” and “Search” buttons as well as navigating through your phone using your mouse and typing using your keyboard. In fact, the “Live” view allows you to fully control your phone remotely. Remember to quit the server once you have completed your use of PicMe. What other ways do you use to take screenshots on your Android phone? Image credit: eguruorg
