How to use your broken smartphone and recover data from a desktop
It happens to the best of us, and annoyingly it normally happens within the first week of having our new shiny smartphone…I’m talking about smashing the screen in some way. Dropping your sleek, shiny device onto the sidewalk will certainly end badly for you, and sometimes it’s just a freak accident.
The good news is that even if your device become unresponsive and doesn’t work, you can still gain access to your valuable content which is hiding beneath the cracked screen. So don’t fear, don’t fret, simply read on and see if any of the methods listed below are helpful.
VNC:
If your device is broken to the point where you can’t see your screen, then the VNC program tool might help. VNC simply means Virtual Network Computing, and as such allows you to remotely access your device from your laptop or computer. In order for this to work though you will need the program installed on both your device and your computer, so it’s wise to install it on your device prior to breaking it.
The USB OTG Method:
If the touchscreen of your device isn’t responding to your fingertips but you can see the screen illuminated beneath that spiderweb of cracked glass, then the USB OTG method could be what you need. All this is, basically, is an On The Go USB mouse which can connect to your device. Once it’s connected you can navigate your device with the mouse instead of your fingers and it should all be gravy. Obviously this isn’t ideal as a long-term solution, but it allows you to unlock your phone and backup any and all of your data either to the cloud or to a MicroSD.
Using AirDroid:
AirDroid is an app and software which you need to install on your device and on your laptop. Once it’s installed and you’ve created an account you’ll be able connect to your Android and subsequently access a few different features. The main one you’ll want to use when you’ve broken your phone is the ‘Backup’ option. This will allow you to backup all of your data onto your computer (so make sure you’ve used the same login information on both).
AirDroid – Best Device Manager
AirDroid is a fast, free app that helps you manage your Android from a web browser, all this without cables.
You can import and export files from your Android device as an alternative to traditional USB cables.
Vysor – Android control on PC
Vysor is very similar to AirDroid, with the exception that it works as an extension for Chrome, allowing you to use it on a Mac or Linux system as well as Windows. The free version works perfectly fine, although there will be a clearly improved experience with the paid version.
Hopefully this article has helped you in some way or another to access your content with your broken device. If you have no password/pattern protection and can easily unlock your phone, then you might be successful just by plugging it into your computer via USB, and then accessing the folders through your laptop.
