"Transferring pictures" Topic

How simple (or hard) is it to transfer pictures from a cell phone to a computer? Hopefully, I won't need anything that's gonna cost me a small fortune, and that I can purchase at a Radio Shack.

Thank you.

Does your phone use a memory card? If so, then a USB memory card reader is your best bet.

If you can send email from your phone, you could just email them to yourself.

If you can't do either of these, you may be able to purchase a cable at a carrier store (Sprint, T-Mobile, AT&T, etc) depending on your service provider.

What is the make/model of your phone?

Unfortunately there is no one answer.

Some carriers "cripple" phones so that even with a cable or BT connection and the appropriate software from the phone's manufacturer, you might still have to transfer pictures through their website to get them to your computer. Of course there is a charge for this.

This is one (of many) reasons that I use Cingular/AT&T and a Motorola Razr. I have the Motorola software (about $30) direct from Motorola and ATT doesn't cripple the phone. So I can freely transfer pictures, media, backup the phonebook, SMS using the computer, etc.

The best advice I can give you is to go ask your carrier what is possible with the particular phone and service that you have.

You could always just email the picture to yourself. It takes a little longer, but you don't have to buy anything.

If your phone is Bluetooth-capable and you have Bluetooth on your computer, you can use that to transfer files (photos and sounds). You might need a Bluetooth receiver for the computer. It looks like a flash drive and plugs into a USB port.

Hey fellas! Sorry for the delay in posting!

Yes, it is Bluetooth-capable. It's a Net10 phone, which can be reloaded as needed. A Bluetooth receiver? Ugh. How much will that cost, StarfuryXL5?

I think I have e-mail capabilities, but if I did, and I didn't receive the e-mail, would my cell phone still have my pictures on file, or would they be lost forever? Thanks, again!

$20-30, at least. Should be the kind of thing you could find in Radio Shack. I've seen one in Walmart, also.

The pictures are on file until you delete them. E-mailing them shouldn't delete them. It's how I used to send them to the computer before I started with the Bluetooth connection. I don't delete anything until I've checked that the copy on the computer is OK.

With the newer phones with better cameras, sometimes storage memory becomes an issue, so newer phones take a memory card. My phone can take a micro-SD card (which I haven't bothered to get yet). It would help with an increased number of pictures and/or sounds. The cards used to be about $25 USD for a 2GB card, but I think they've come down to about $15 USD now.

You could then use a card reader to copy the files from the phone's card to the computer. I got a card reader for use with my camera from Walmart for about $12. USD It purportedly reads 52 different cards (I didn't even know they had that many ).

I use a micro SD card and a USB card reader. micro SD cards are stupid cheap these days and you can buy a card readers for as little as $9.99.