Technology

How to print, save, send Android text messages

Published

5 months ago

August 27, 2024

How to print, save, send Android text messages

There are many reasons for wanting to print out a text message. Maybe someone sent you some exciting news via SMS, and you’d like to print it out and pin it on your bulletin board. Or maybe someone has sent you directions on how to do something or how to get somewhere, and you want to have it for fast reference. Of course, there could also be times when you’re saving a text as documentation of a conversation or agreement that went awry, and you need it as proof to protect yourself.

Printing is one way to hold onto your text messages. But, if you want to stick with keeping everything on your device, then perhaps you’re just looking to know how to save the text messages to your Android phone so you can pull them up later. You may also want to know how to send precious text messages to someone else so they can have a copy, too, or so they can print it for you from their device.

The good news is that if you have an Android phone, it’s relatively easy to print, save or send a text message. Keep reading below.

If you’re an iPhone user, you can get our iPhone tips in our article: Four ways to print, save and send text messages.

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A person texting on Android (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

Do I need to connect my Android phone to a printer to print text messages?

If you want to print text messages directly from an Android phone, you’ll need to connect your phone to your printer. However, if you want to print text messages without connecting your phone to a printer, you will need to send the message from your Android phone to the device that’s capable of printing.

What you need to know about printing, saving and sending text messages on Android

Android doesn’t provide a native way to print text messages directly from your inbox. So, you have to take matters into your own hands. There are several strategies you can utilize to print your text messages, and the choice depends on factors such as ease of use, time efficiency and the specific features of your Android device.

Many of these methods involve creating backups or copies of your messages, which can be stored externally (on a computer or in the cloud) rather than on your Android device itself. This is important because if you happen to lose the printed version, you don’t have to worry; you can access these backups to retrieve and print the messages again. However, it’s crucial to note that these backups are typically not stored on your Android device but rather in the location where you created the backup.

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The No. 1 best option: Take a screenshot to do everything you need

The best way to print, save and send text messages if you have an Android is to take a screenshot of the text message itself. This method is particularly effective for capturing a few screens of text. Why? Because once you have a screenshot, you can do just about anything with it after that. However, if you’re looking to print out a very long thread that may go back many months or years, please refer to the section later in the article for more suitable options.

How to take a screenshot on your Android

Settings may vary depending on your Android phone’s manufacturer.

Open your messages and select the conversation where you want to print, save or share the text message.
Scroll to the part in the conversation you want to print or save
Hold the power button and the volume down button at the same time, and this will take a screenshot.
Your screenshot will move to the bottom-left corner of the screen.
Then wait. Head to the corresponding steps below, depending on what you’d like to do

Note: If you can’t capture the entire message in one screenshot, you will need to take multiple screenshots of each part of the conversation.

Steps to take a screenshot on Android (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

How to print the screenshot directly from your Android

For this step, your phone will need to be connected directly to your printer. Make sure your Bluetooth/Wi-Fi is on.

Settings may vary depending on your Android phone’s manufacturer.

As soon as you take the screenshot following the steps above, you will see two icons appear on the right of the image.
One is the share icon. Click on it
Select Nearby Share or Bluetooth, depending on how Android connects to your printer
Select the printer and click Print

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Steps to print screenshot directly from Android (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

How to send the screenshot to someone else or another device to print

If your Android phone is not connected to your printer, but you have another device that is, then you need to share it with yourself so you can pull it up on another device.

You can also follow these steps if you want to send your screenshot to someone else, either so they can print it for you or just because you want them to have it.

Settings may vary depending on your Android phone’s manufacturer.

As soon as you take the screenshot following the steps above, you will see two icons appear on the right of the image. One is the share icon.
Click on the share icon
You’ll see icons for various messaging apps, and conversations appear.
Select the conversation or app you want to open …

To send to yourself:

Select the Gmail app and put the email to your email address in the “To:” field. The screenshot will be automatically attached.
Hit Send
Then open your email on your device that’s connected to your printer
You can also use this method to email it to someone else; just put their name in the “To:” field instead.

To send to someone else:

If you had a recent conversation with this person, that will appear.
Otherwise, find the app (i.e., Facebook Messenger or WhatsApp) and pull up their contact
Click Send

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Steps to send the screenshot to someone else or another device to print (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

How to save and pull up the screenshot to print or send later

Let’s say that the share icon disappeared quickly after taking the screenshot. Now, you need to pull it up again later. Taking a screenshot automatically saves the text message you took a picture of to your phone. Here’s how you can find it:

Settings may vary depending on your Android phone’s manufacturer.

Go to your Gallery or Google Photos to pull up the image from the Screenshots folder
Find the image of the text message screenshot
Then, to print, select the three dots in the upper-right corner
A toolbar will appear that will go about halfway up your screen. Look for the icons that say Back up now, Move to folder, Copy to folder, etc., and keep scrolling to the right until you see Print.
If your Android is connected to your printer (or if you’re choosing another printer, click the upper-left corner to select the printer.
Select Print
If you want to send instead, in the bottom left corner there will be the share icon.
Select the conversation and/or app you want to send the image to. If you had a recent conversation with this person, that would appear. Otherwise, find the app (i.e. Facebook Messenger or WhatsApp) and pull up their contact.
Click Send

Steps to save and pull up the screenshot to print or send later (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

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How to (only) send: Forward the text message

If you just want to send the text message to someone else, you can forward the specific text message from your conversation to someone else. To do this:

Settings may vary depending on your Android phone’s manufacturer.

Open the conversation where the text message is
Click and hold on to the message you want to forward until it’s highlighted.
Click the three dots in the upper-right corner of the screen.
Select Forward
Choose who you want to send it to or click New message if you don’t see the contact appear or the person is not saved in your contacts.
Hit the send button.

Note: You can only forward one text at a time.

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Steps to (only) send: Forward the text message (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

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How to (only) print from another device: Open the Google Web Messaging app

Just as iPhone uses iMessage, Android phones use Google Messaging. It may be hard to recognize this on your phone, as it just looks like a standard text messaging app. But you can pull up Google Messaging on your laptop or another device, especially since most Google/Android products are synced if you have a Gmail account.

Settings may vary depending on your Android phone’s manufacturer.

On your other device, go to www.messages.google.com
Follow the directions to pair your phone with Google Messages with your Android device via a QR code
Once you’re signed in, you will see your text messages from your phone appear here.
Select the conversation with the text messages that you want to print
Click the three dots in the upper-right corner of your browser window (not the three dots just beneath them in the app)
Select Print

Alternatively, you can also take a screenshot of the text message conversation on your laptop following the screenshot directions that are unique for your computer and then print that way.

How to (only) save: Back up text messages to your device with Google One

Finally, you can save text messages to your phone with the help of Google Account storage on Google One. All Android devices come with 15GB of storage for Google One, but other accounts come with free 100GB, depending on a few factors. To back up your text messages (as well as other data from your phone):

Settings may vary depending on your Android phone’s manufacturer.

Go to your phone’s Settings
Search Backup
Click the first one under System > Backup
Then click Turn on in the bottom right corner; this will automatically back up your texts to your Google Drive in the future.
On the next screen, click Back up now

Note: Having “backup” on doesn’t necessarily allow you to view specific text messages. What it does is save all your phone’s data so that if you lose your phone, you can back up the new one with the same data without having to worry about losing anything forever. When you do that, you’ll find those text messages as long as they were there during the backup.

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Steps to (only) save: Back up text messages to your device with Google One (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

Extract and print Android text messages (Spanning days, months or years) with Droid Transfer

Here’s an option for extracting and printing messages from an Android phone. For this step, you’ll need Droid Transfer. Droid Transfer can access your Android device’s data and copy it to your PC or print it out. The software can find any SMS or MMS message conversations, including images, emojis and timestamps on your device, save them to your PC or print them out. Droid Transfer is capable of handling and printing text messages that span days, months or even years.

To print text messages from Android:

Download Droid Transfer on your PC and run it

Get the free Transfer Companion App on your Android phone
Scan the Droid Transfer QR code with the Transfer Companion App
The computer and phone are now linked.
Click Messages in Droid Transfer to view all your Android messages
Select a conversation and click Print

Kurt’s key takeaways

In today’s world, most human interaction happens via a phone, whether on video chat, a messaging app or good ole SMS text messaging (as well as MMS, which is for picture messages). For one reason or another, you may want to print these messages or know how to send and save them. Though there are many different ways to do this on Android, taking a screenshot is by far the most versatile option.

Have you ever printed a text message from your Android phone? What’s your preferred way to save or send messages? Let us know by writing us at Cyberguy.com/Contact.

For more of my tech tips and security alerts, subscribe to my free CyberGuy Report Newsletter by heading to Cyberguy.com/Newsletter.

Ask Kurt a question or let us know what stories you’d like us to cover.

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Answers to the most asked CyberGuy questions:

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Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson is an award-winning tech journalist who has a deep love of technology, gear and gadgets that make life better with his contributions for Fox News & FOX Business beginning mornings on “FOX & Friends.” Got a tech question? Get Kurt’s free CyberGuy Newsletter, share your voice, a story idea or comment at CyberGuy.com.

Technology

Amazon is ‘winding down’ some of its DEI programs

Published

10 hours ago

January 10, 2025

Press Room

Amazon is ‘winding down’ some of its DEI programs

As we head toward the end of the year, I want to give another update on the work we’ve been doing around representation and inclusion.

As a large, global company that operates in different countries and industries, we serve hundreds of millions of customers from a range of backgrounds and globally diverse communities. To serve them effectively, we need millions of employees and partners that reflect our customers and communities. We strive to be representative of those customers and build a culture that’s inclusive for everyone.

In the last few years we took a new approach, reviewing hundreds of programs across the company, using science to evaluate their effectiveness, impact, and ROI – identifying the ones we believed should continue. Each one of these addresses a specific disparity, and is designed to end when that disparity is eliminated. In parallel, we worked to unify employee groups together under one umbrella, and build programs that are open to all. Rather than have individual groups build programs, we are focusing on programs with proven outcomes – and we also aim to foster a more truly inclusive culture. You can read more about this on our Together at Amazon page on A to Z.

This approach – where we move away from programs that were separate from our existing processes, and instead integrating our work into existing processes so they become durable— is the evolution to “built in” and “born inclusive,” instead of “bolted on.” As part of this evolution, we’ve been winding down outdated programs and materials, and we’re aiming to complete that by the end of 2024. We also know there will always be individuals or teams who continue to do well-intentioned things that don’t align with our company-wide approach, and we might not always see those right away. But we’ll keep at it.

We’ll continue to share ongoing updates, and appreciate your hard work in driving this progress. We believe this is important work, so we’ll keep investing in programs that help us reflect those audiences, help employees grow, thrive, and connect, and we remain dedicated to delivering inclusive experiences for customers, employees, and communities around the world.

Technology

Chinese auto giant wants to make flying cars your next commute option

Published

11 hours ago

January 10, 2025

Press Room

Chinese auto giant wants to make flying cars your next commute option

GAC Group, a prominent automotive manufacturer from China, is making waves in the transportation sector with the launch of its new eVTOL brand, Govy.

This development reflects GAC’s commitment to sustainable air travel, as the company taps into its extensive automotive expertise and innovative technology to create fresh solutions for urban mobility.

With Govy, GAC is not just entering the flying car market; it’s setting the stage for a new era in how we think about commuting and connectivity in our cities.

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Flagship aircraft of Govy named AirJet. (Govy)

Introducing the AirJet

The flagship aircraft of Govy, named AirJet, is a revolutionary composite-wing flying car designed to operate as an air taxi for distances of up to 124 miles. This innovative vehicle combines the efficiency of fixed-wing aircraft with the flexibility of multi-rotor systems, allowing for vertical takeoff and landing capabilities.

The AirJet is constructed with over 90% carbon fiber composite materials, making it remarkably lightweight — just one-third the weight of a conventional car of similar size. This lightweight design not only enhances performance but also enables longer electric flights.

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Flagship aircraft of Govy named AirJet. (Govy)

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Performance and features of the AirJet

In terms of performance, the AirJet is powered by GAC’s proprietary electric drive system, which allows it to reach impressive speeds of up to 155 miles per hour. The current model boasts a range exceeding 124 miles, with ambitious plans to extend this range to 249 miles through the development of future solid-state battery technology. Additionally, the AirJet can be recharged in just 30 minutes, ensuring quick turnaround times for operations.

The AirJet is designed with both luxury and safety in mind. It features a spacious cabin with a “1+1+X” seating arrangement that provides flexibility for passengers. The aircraft is equipped with autonomous flight capabilities, allowing for seamless operation without human intervention. Safety is paramount in the design of the AirJet. It includes advanced safety systems such as redundant power and control systems, real-time monitoring, and obstacle detection to ensure secure flights.

Flagship aircraft of Govy named AirJet. (Govy)

AN ELECTRIC AIRCRAFT THE MILITARY HAS ITS EYES ON CAN TAKE OFF WITH ONLY 150 FEET OF RUNWAY

The robo-air taxi system

GAC’s vision extends beyond individual aircraft to encompass a comprehensive Robo-AirTaxi system that integrates ground and aerial transport for end-to-end smart mobility solutions. This system will utilize the Govy AirCar for short urban trips under 12.4 miles and the AirJet for mid-range travel up to 124 miles. A key aspect of this vision is the creation of a “40-minute Greater Bay Area life circle” in China, which aims to facilitate efficient intercity travel and significantly reduce transit times and costs.

Flagship aircraft of Govy named AirJet. (Govy)

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Future plans and commercialization

Looking ahead, GAC has outlined an ambitious roadmap for Govy. By 2025, the company aims to achieve airworthiness certification for its flying cars, establish production lines, and begin taking pre-orders from customers. Furthermore, GAC plans to launch demonstration operations in two to three Greater Bay Area cities of China by 2027.

Flagship aircraft of named AirJet. (Govy)

Kurt’s key takeaways

With the introduction of Govy and its flagship AirJet, GAC Group is positioning itself at the forefront of urban aerial transportation. By combining innovative technology with a comprehensive ecosystem approach, GAC aims to transform urban mobility into something smarter, safer, and more sustainable. As we move toward a future where aerial vehicles become an integral part of our transportation networks, GAC’s initiatives could play a pivotal role in shaping how we navigate our cities and connect with one another.

Would you feel comfortable using flying cars like the Govy AirJet for your daily commute, and why or why not? Let us know by writing us at Cyberguy.com/Contact

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Technology

Drone takes out Super Scooper fighting Los Angeles wildfires

Published

20 hours ago

January 10, 2025

Press Room

Drone takes out Super Scooper fighting Los Angeles wildfires

An aircraft helping to fight wildfires that are raging across Los Angeles was struck by a civilian drone on Thursday. The collision damaged the wing of the aircraft — a CL-415 “Super Scooper” capable of scooping up 1,600 gallons of ocean water to drop onto nearby blazes — according to a statement by the LA County Fire Department posted on X, putting it out of service until it can be repaired.

Cal Fire spokesman Chris Thomas told The New York Times that grounding the aircraft will likely set back local firefighting efforts. Super Scoopers can typically refill in about five minutes. But even if it takes ten, that’s six water drops that are lost each hour according to Thomas. “So whose house is not going to get that water to protect it?” The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) says the Super Scooper landed safely after the drone impact, and that the incident is now under investigation.

Temporary flight restrictions have been implemented in the Los Angeles area that prohibit drones and other aircraft from flying without FAA authorization in an effort to protect firefighting efforts.

According to LA County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone, the drone was not assigned to help tackle the Palisades fires, and was destroyed in the collision. Marrone told the LA Times that the FBI is now planning to implement so-called “aerial armor” in the area to prevent further interference from drones.

Several people online have violated the FAA-enforced flight restrictions, posting viral drone photos and video footage across social media showing the devastation from what appears to be prohibited airspace. Fire response agencies are often forced to ground their own aircraft to avoid collisions when dummies fly drones near wildfires for online clout.

“It’s a federal crime, punishable by up to 12 months in prison, to interfere with firefighting efforts on public lands,” the FAA said in a statement. “Additionally, the FAA can impose a civil penalty of up to $75,000 against any drone pilot who interferes with wildfire suppression, law enforcement or emergency response operations. The FAA treats these violations seriously and immediately considers swift enforcement action for these offenses.”