When I had first researched options for screen recordings on Android devices, all I could find were some rather clumsy tools to capture/record apps. More than 3 years later, I thought I take a second look and test the currently available options using my Samsung Galaxy S7 phone. For Samsung devices, their free SideSync tool seems to be the best option. This tool allows you to mirror the Android device’s screen to your PC desktop.

The tool provides options to either connect to the device via USB or Wi-Fi. The USB connection is supposed to be more responsive. In my test, I didn’t notice a significant difference between both options.

Once connected, you can easily record the mirrored device screen, using Captivate’s Video Demo recording option. Here is a sample recording:

Use the device as you normally would; tap on icons, scroll up/down, swipe, pinch to zoom, etc. All user actions are mirrored to the SideSync window which in turn is recorded in Captivate. Once the recording is complete, you can complete the ‘illusion’ by overlaying a bitmap of a phone with a transparent cutout for the screen.

I’m sure other Android device manufacturers offer tools similar to Samsung SideSync. Also, there is an app called Reflector, which allows you to mirror both iOS and Android device screens to your desktop.