Life is short and there is more to think about than ever when it comes to the end of life. Tap or click for steps to decide who will access your accounts when you’re gone.
If you’ve lost someone, you know how comforting pictures and videos can be. The ability to read old text conversations is also special. Tap or click for the best way to save your texts.
Your smartphone’s voicemail box can be another place to listen to the words of a loved one. Don’t bet on your phone to keep it to yourself indefinitely. Here’s how to save a copy forever.
Saving voicemails on iPhone
Apple makes saving and sharing voicemails easy. This is great for business or personal use. Just be careful you share what you wish for.
To save or share voicemail on iPhone:
• Go to Phone app and knock Voice mail in the lower right.
• Tap the voicemail you want to save, then tap share the button. It looks like a box with an arrow pointing at it.
• You can now share this voicemail via AirDrop, Messages, Mail, Notes, or Voice Memo.
• To save the voicemail to the phone, select Notes or Voice memo. You can access the saved message again in any application and play it at your leisure. Both apps automatically back up the file to iCloud if you have iCloud turned on.
• To save the voicemail to your computer, select AirDrop:then tap your computer name. Make sure both devices are connected to the same network. Accept AirDrop on your computer and save the message wherever you want.
• To send the voicemail to another person, select a contact in Messages or Mail, or share it with someone nearby via AirDrop.
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Saving voicemails on Android
Different manufacturers make Android phones, so saving voicemails is slightly different depending on your model. But you can follow some general steps to save those important messages.
• Open your Voicemail application or go to the Voicemail section of your Phone app.
• Tap or tap and hold the message you want to save.
• In the menu that appears, look for options such as Save, Export, or Archive.
• Select the storage location on your phone where you would like the message to be sent and tap ok or Save.
Get voicemails from an old phone
If you have voicemails stored on a non-smartphone, your best bet is to record them on a computer. This requires some equipment, but not as much as you might think.
To save voicemails on older phones:
• Download Audacity or another similar audio recording program to your computer. If you have a Mac, Garageband can do what you need.
• Find out if your old phone has a headphone jack.
• If so, get a 3.5mm audio cable and plug one end into your phone’s headphone jack and the other end into your computer’s jack.
• If it doesn’t, turn up the volume on your phone and pick up a microphone or hold the phone close to your computer’s internal microphone port. You may need to experiment to find the exact location.
• Open your phone’s voicemail and find the message you want to save.
• In your audio recording program, click record and play the message. When the message is finished, stop recording.
• Save the file to your computer to save it.
The sound quality might not be perfect, but at least that message won’t be lost forever if something happens to your old device.
Keep up with your tech skills
My popular podcast is called Kim Komando Today. It’s 30 minutes of tech news, tips and callers with tech questions just like you from around the country. Search it wherever you get your podcasts. For your convenience, click the link below for the latest episode.
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Learn about all the latest technology on the Kim Komando Show, the nation’s largest weekend radio talk show. Kim takes calls and offers advice on today’s digital lifestyle, from smartphones and tablets to online privacy and data hacking. For his daily tips, free newsletters and more, visit his website at Komando.com.
The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of USA TODAY.
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