Screenshot and Draw Android App Review

by Antonio Wells Jul 16, 2012 2:18 PM – 2 Comments

Install

Screenshot and Draw is an app to help you take screenshots on your Android device from virtually any screen, app or game you may be in, plus you can opt to draw on top of the picture after a snap.

Price: Free Trial, $1.99

Tested on: Nexus One, Xperia Ion, HTC One X, HTC Desire HD, Galaxy Nexus, Samsung Galaxy S3
Content Rating: Everyone

AndroidTapp.com Android App Review:

Pros & Cons:

Pros

Screenshot with or without root (with setup of batch file from computer)!

Cons

Very cumbersome and can get technical to get properly working (for non-rooted folks).
Issues with working on many devices (not just ours but many in the Google Play Store too).
Forces close under multiple stitch shot.
Useless for folks for with Android 4 or higher.
Requires an SD card to work.

Features:

I could remember when taking screenshots on Android required you to download the Android developers SDK and tether via USB. I could remember at the inception of this wonderful site, we were the only resource that offered as many screenshots with our app reviews as it took to give you a try it before you buy it experience, back when Google allowed developers only 2 pictures in the Android Market, and we still post many to this day. Fast forward to the rapid evolution of Android apps and you’ll find plenty of apps that allow you to take screenshots on your device without tethering, we introduce Screenshot and Draw.

As mentioned the app intends to allow you to grab a screenshot on your Android device then immediately shows you options to crop, share, draw lines & shapes, write text, and draw free-hand text atop the picture. There are many options to control line thickness, color, position, determine whether to save as a JPG or higher quality PNG, set the screenshot countdown timer, take a screen from the top notification bar, shake to screenshot, and if your phone has a dedicated camera button- use it to snag the screenshot. Another feature allows you to stitch a a set of screenshots together (i.e. if you wanted to capture all 5+ panels on your home screen), however, we got constant force closures with this method so couldn’t see it in action.

I think we just got Alpha tested…

We wanted to love this app as it is an essential need for our daily writing lives, but Screenshot and Draw is plagued with issues; from not being compatible to nearly all but one of the devices listed above (it worked on the Xperia Ion but the image was scrambled and unusable), constant force closures on multiple shot & stitch mode, the need to run a batch file on PC/Linux (each time you restart the phone), useless for folks with Android 4 and higher as you can screenshot very easily with a few buttons on the phone; it’s just too frustrating to recommend.

: Screenshot and Draw Testing 1

: Screenshot and Draw Testing 2

: Screenshot and Draw Testing 3

: Screenshot and Draw Multiple Shots

: Screenshot and Draw Active

: Screenshot and Draw Not Active

: Screenshot and Draw Capture Games

: Screenshot and Draw Bad Scrambled Picture from Xperia Ion

Usefulness:

We bounced this one around several phones in the office and between several writers to only be able to get it to work on my rooted Nexus One, running a version of Cyanogenmod Android 2.3.7. We’ve seen similar complaints of many in the Google Play Store; either that it simply doesn’t work or you get “Screenshot failed” error. This would be a useful app for app developers or those in the press & media, running Android 3 and lower, but right now it’s completely useless until it’s overhauled.

Ease of Use:

Screenshot and Draw loses in this department if you’re not rooted, as you have to plug in your device via USB, download and run a batch file at least one. If you’re rooted, you should be fine, however, you’ll find better apps that can take screenshots in the Market.

Interface:

On the device that it worked on, I found the interface a bit quirky and needed some work as well. It’s a bit convoluted in how you navigate from the draw screen and main options toolbars.

AndroidTapp.com Rating

AndroidTapp.com Rating! (2.3 out of 5)

Should you Download Screenshot and Draw? No! For several reasons mentioned above. Fails to work on many devices, requires you to run a batch file on non-rooted devices (only upon device restart), poor scrambled pictures on some phones, convoluted drawing & navigation controls, and utterly useless for folks running Android 4 or higher (granted that’s the minority Android consumers currently). I would recommend you seek other apps like Screenshot It or No Root Screenshot It we’ve reviewed or others in the Google Play Store.

Developer: Condition Delta

Tags: Android App, Android Apps, AndroidTapp.com App Review, How to Take Screenshots on Android, Screenshot, Screenshot and Draw, Screenshot and Draw Trial, Screenshot Taking Android Apps, Screenshot without root

Categorised in: Productivity, Tools

2 Comments

By Jake on July 16, 2012 at 9:36 pm:

My mistake – I thought you gave unbiased reviews.

Sorry to hear about your troubles but to call it useless is using pretty strong words. ICS’s built in screenshot capability is pretty limited..but I think you already know that.

Thank you for the screenshot on the experia. I will be looking into that.

Most phones run out of memory when you exceed 5 shots using merge. That’s why I give the warning that you can merge 5 shots maximum not 5+ like you wrote above.

Reply
- By Antonio Wells on July 17, 2012 at 9:03 am:
  
  I would just like to know where in the review it was biased. Our whole team had tremendous trouble with firstly getting the app to work.
  
  Yes, the phrase useless is harsh, however, warranted for this scenario. For example, I questioned myself twice when loading it onto a Galaxy S3. Which has two methods of taking screenshots; the hand gesture swipe to capture or simultaneously hold Power and Home buttons. Furthermore, it comes with S Memo for drawing notes, placing text and more on the screen capture; the doodling tools are far superior. Also are you aware the Galaxy Note and Galaxy Tab 2 line of tablets have a built-in screen capture button as part of the main navigation, which then segues into a doodle/taking app? I mention this because some devices have easier, far superior solutions already built-in, not to mention other apps that do this and more. And if you’re building an app that is intended to solve a problem or add convenience to a problem, bringing more complexity, malfunction and convulsion to the table doesn’t help. I would suggest you take this constructive criticism and use it as an itinerary list to update it into an awesome app, I’m fully confident you can!
  
  Reply