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How to Get a Picture From an Android Phone to a Windows 8 PC

By Nick Peers
The quality of the picture depends on the phone's camera.
i Justin Sullivan/Getty Images News/Getty Images

All Android smartphones have a built-in camera, so they can take pictures and store them on the SD card. You can transfer a picture from your Android device to your Windows 8 computer using the USB cable. You could also email the picture, but you need Internet access on both the phone and the computer, as well as an email account set up on the phone, to succeed. You don't need to install additional software on your computer to connect to the Android phone. Windows 8 is able to install the drivers for your device as soon as you connect it to the computer.

Step 1

Connect the Android phone to your computer by using the USB cable that came with the phone.

Step 2

Tap "USB Storage" on the phone and then tap "OK" to confirm. Windows 8 detects the phone in a matter of seconds and installs the correct drivers in less than one minute. It then assigns a new drive to your phone.

Step 3

Click "Open folder to view files" when the AutoPlay window appears. If the window does not appear, press "Windows-X," choose "File Explorer" from the Power User menu and then select the new drive in File Explorer to view the contents of the phone.

Step 4

Double-click the "DCIM" folder and then double-click the "Camera" folder to view all pictures on the Android phone.

Step 5

Select the picture you want to transfer to the computer and press "Ctrl-C" to copy the picture to the clipboard. To view picture thumbnails, right-click on an empty spot in the folder, choose "View" and click "Tiles."

Step 6

Navigate to the folder in which you want to store the image and press "Ctrl-V" to paste the image from the clipboard into the folder.

Step 7

Right-click the "Safely Remove Hardware and Eject Media" icon in the system tray and choose "Eject Phone_Name" from the menu to disconnect from the phone.

Tips

  • You can transfer several images at once. Hold "Ctrl" and click each image until you select all the images, or press "Ctrl-A" to select all the images in the Camera folder.
  • When you connect the Android phone to your computer in USB Storage mode, two drives may be created: one for the SD card and one for the phone. If your image is on the phone, open the DCIM\Camera folder on the second drive.
  • To email a picture, open the picture in the Gallery app, tap the "Share" button and then tap "Email." Enter your email address into the "To" field and tap "Send" to send the picture as an email to yourself.
  • On older Android devices, you need to slide the Notifications panel, tap "USB connected," "Connect USB storage" and then tap "OK" to enable USB Storage mode.
  • If the computer can't connect to the phone, you must install the software -- includes the drivers in most cases -- for the phone from the manufacturer's website.

Warnings

  • Do not disconnect the phone from your computer while the transfer is in progress.
  • Do not disconnect the USB cable from your computer while the Android device is connecting in USB storage mode.
  • The location of the "Camera" folder may be different, depending on the device you are attempting to connect to the computer and the Android version on the device.

Writer Bio

Nick Peers has been writing technology-related articles since 2003. His articles have appeared in dozens of technical publications, including MSN UK, CNET, BBC Who Do You Think You Are, LifeHacker UK and TechRadar. He holds a Masters in information technology degree from the University of East London.

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