How to Take a Screenshot on an LG Ally

by William Lynch
You'll need a USB cable to get screen captures from your LG Ally smartphone.

You'll need a USB cable to get screen captures from your LG Ally smartphone.

Hemera Technologies/AbleStock.com/Getty Images

Taking screenshots on your smartphone allows you to save Web images, to preserve memorable private messages or even to share publicity shots of apps you're developing. Smartphones running Android 4.0 can take screenshots by a simple key combination, but the LG Ally does not support that version of the Android software. If you'd like to capture images on an LG Ally, you'll need to install two separate software programs on your PC.

Step 1

Download the Google Android software development kit and the Java SE software development kit to your PC (see the links in Resources). Extract the Google Android SDK to a folder on your computer's desktop. Double-click the Java SE SDK and follow the prompts to install it on your computer.

Step 2

Press the "Home" icon on your LG Ally. Select "Menu" and then tap "Settings." 

Choose "Applications" from the Settings options and then select "Development." Check the "USB Debugging" box.

Step 3

Use your USB cable to connect your LG Ally to your computer. Windows will automatically try and install the necessary drivers, prompting it to start your Control Panel's Device Manager.

Step 4

Locate the LG Ally entry, which should have a yellow icon next to it. Right-click and select "Properties." Instruct Windows to update/install the driver for this device. Point Windows to the Android SDK's "usb_driver" folder that you saved to your desktop. Windows should now recognize the device.

Step 5

Browse the Android SDK folder. Double-click and run the SDK Setup.exe file to initiate the program and to bring up the Android SDK and AVD Manager panel. Click the "Refresh" button in the panel's bottom-right corner to update the list of available operating system SDKs from Google. Select all available SDKs and download them to your computer. Close the application.

Step 6

Browse the Android SDK folder. Double-click the DDMS.bat file to initiate the Dalvik Debug Monitor. Once the Windows-based application opens, select your phone from among the options on the left side of the screen.

Step 7

Click the "Device" menu. Select "Screen Capture" or press "Ctrl-S." Your LG Ally screen image is captured.

Tip

  • After capturing the image, click the "Copy" button and then paste the image into your preferred image-editing program to save the file. This additional step avoids an occasional bug in the capture utility that can interfere with preserving the image's true colors.

Warning

  • An alternative solution involves rooting the LG Ally – a similar process to jailbreaking an iPhone – and then installing one of numerous third-party screen-capturing apps. Although such rooting procedures are legal, they violate the LG Ally terms of service, voiding any product warranty or service guarantee.

About the Author

William Lynch has been a freelance writer for the past fifteen years, working for various web sites and publications. He is currently enrolled in a Master of Arts program in writing popular fiction at Seton Hill University. He hopes to one day become a mystery novelist.

Photo Credits

  • Hemera Technologies/AbleStock.com/Getty Images