A smartphone, however sleek and powerful it may be, remains an object that can easily break, particularly when it comes to fragile components like the screen. Most often, the screen takes a hit and either the glass is cracked or the touchscreen no longer responds. Handling your device then becomes almost impossible. It then becomes necessary to have it replaced or to buy a new phone. But before making any decision, you should think about backing up your files. Rest assured! Even with a broken screen, it is possible to recover your data, particularly when the device runs on Android. Depending on the situation, the procedure to follow may vary. This is why it is especially recommended to go through a professional.
The screen is broken but still works: how to recover your data?
Cases where the smartphone screen is broken but still partially functional are the most common and the easiest to handle. Before knowing how to proceed, you must first unlock the device. If it is equipped with a fingerprint sensor, there is no problem at all.
Otherwise, the solution available to you is to use an OTG keyboard or an OTG mouse connected to your smartphone. This way, you can enter the password or draw the unlock pattern to fully access the device. Next, you’ll need to disconnect the OTG mouse in order to connect your device to a computer. At this stage, here is the procedure to follow to retrieve your files.
- Connect the phone to the PC using a USB cable.
- Check that the “Mass storage” option on the smartphone is enabled. If not, enable it. The icon to access the menu usually appears in the notifications.
- Open Windows File Explorer and go to the “This PC” directory.
- Select and click on your smartphone’s icon to access its content.
- Choose the files you wish to recover and copy them to a folder on your PC.
The screen is broken and unresponsive: using Chrome Vysor
It can happen that after the unfortunate incident, the phone’s broken screen no longer responds at all or, in the worst case, no longer turns on. What’s more, you don’t have OTG equipment on hand to unlock it. This makes its content inaccessible. Don’t worry! There is a solution.
What needs to be done in this specific case is to turn to software to recover your files on your smartphone with a broken screen. These tools give you the ability to access your screen by mirroring it onto a PC. But before using them, you must have already enabled USB debugging on your phone beforehand (before the screen became unusable).
If that is the case, you can then use Chrome Vysor, which is a very easy-to-use extension. Here’s how to do it.
- Download and install the extension.
- Connect your phone to the computer.
- Then launch the application and click on Find devices.
- Choose your device and proceed to back up your data.
USB debugging inactive: how to recover your data?
In the event that you don’t have an OTG mouse or OTG keyboard, and USB debugging is not enabled on your smartphone with a broken screen, you have only one solution left. Restart into Recovery Mode. You must then be careful and follow the instructions step by step to get there.
- Turn off your phone.
- Restarting into recovery mode varies depending on the phone. In most cases, it is enough to press and hold the power button and the volume up button simultaneously for a few seconds.
- In recovery mode, the power and volume buttons let you navigate between the mode’s options and select one or the other. Careful! You could format your device if you make a wrong move!
- Once in the recovery menu, you have the option to connect the phone to a PC and access the files you want to recover.
- After the actual recovery, press and hold the power button to turn off the smartphone.
You now know how to easily recover your data on your Android phone with a broken screen. However, when the smartphone with the broken screen runs on iOS, the process to follow is a bit different. How do you recover your data in that case?
How to recover your data on iOS?
When you own an iPhone and your phone’s screen is broken, recovering your files is very simple. But you must have already connected the smartphone to your PC and authorized your computer to access your iPhone beforehand (before the screen became unusable). Here is the process that will allow you to find and back up your files.
- On a MacBook: plug your iPhone into the computer. Go to Finder and click on your device’s name. A window will open, allowing you to transfer your data.
- On a Windows PC: plug your iPhone into the computer. iTunes should launch automatically. It is recommended to have iTunes up to date. Once in the software’s interface, you will be able to easily back up your device’s data through “iCloud.”
Turning to a professional: the most reliable option
Each of the operations described above carries a certain level of complexity, which you will face to a greater or lesser extent depending on your computer skills. In any case, since it’s a matter of files to recover, there is no question of doing an approximate job. As a precaution, it would therefore be preferable to turn to a professional. At Chronodisk, our technicians have extensive experience with data recovery on various types of media. Whether you have the latest trendy Samsung or an old LG, if your smartphone’s screen breaks, don’t rush into anything! Turn to us and we will help you recover all of your files.