Solved: How do I get pictures off of an Amazon Fire?
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I connected the Fire to my desktop. It shows up but even when I right click I can’t see any of the files. Windows makes it look like there are no files. What am I missing? Thanks.
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You might be using a charging only cable… data transfer requires a data cable (which all also charge).
Try unplugging and plugging tablet back in to see if files load (may take a few tries… be sure to allow sufficient time for register as lower end devices transfer data more slowly).
Try rebooting tablet while plugged to computer,
Try rebooting computer while tablet is plugged in,
The easiest option bypasses the problem altogether: take a microSD from another device and insert into tablet. Transfer files (copy or move) to card then remove card from tablet. You can then insert the card into the phone/tablet you want the files on or insert the card into the internal or external card reader on your computer to copy the files there.
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@fivetalents Thanks! I’m definitely using a charging only cable. Never knew that there was a difference. I think the one I’m using was $1 on eBay.
IDK anything about memory cards (I presume that’s what a microSD is). I don’t have any devices with cards AFAIK. What device might have one? I bought funny stuff that was FAR so I’ll have to look to see if I have a memory card. If not I’ll get one w/ Staples Rewards.
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@my4mainecoons said in How do I get pictures off of an Amazon Fire?:
@fivetalents Thanks! I’m definitely using a charging only cable. Never knew that there was a difference. I think the one I’m using was $1 on eBay.
IDK anything about memory cards (I presume that’s what a microSD is). I don’t have any devices with cards AFAIK. What device might have one? I bought funny stuff that was FAR so I’ll have to look to see if I have a memory card. If not I’ll get one w/ Staples Rewards.
YW.
You should have a data cable from another device lying around somewhere… that’s what most tablets and mobile phones ship with.
Sorry, and yes, a microSD is the standard memory card size for mobile devices. They usually have to be purchased separately… a big deal would be made on the packaging/product page if one were bundled with the device (i.e., you’d probably know if you had one).
I definitely recommend having a microSD card in every mobile device… regularly transfer pics, pdfs, music, apps, screenshots etc. to the card to free up internal memory for running your apps smoothly. Get at least 32GB (even good ones start under $10 on sale), though 64GB is more practical/convenient. If you put a lot of files on your devices, a 256GB or larger would be better. Whatever the size, make sure it has a fast read/write speed (e.g., class 10).
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@fivetalents I have laptops and cell phone that has no phone service. IDK what a data cable looks like. I have the Trac Phone I haven’t used yet. I’ve charged it. Maybe that cable is a data cable? Do data cables & charging cables look the same?
I was taking most pictures using digital camera. I have a memory card reader for it that I plug into laptop.
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@my4mainecoons said in How do I get pictures off of an Amazon Fire?:
@fivetalents I have laptops and cell phone that has no phone service. IDK what a data cable looks like. I have the Trac Phone I haven’t used yet. I’ve charged it. Maybe that cable is a data cable? Do data cables & charging cables look the same?
I was taking most pictures using digital camera. I have a memory card reader for it that I plug into laptop.
Phone service has nothing to do with this.
Yes, microUSB data cables and microUSB charging only cables look identical. It’s the internal components that dictate function (e.g., higher quality data cables transfer data faster).
Your TracFone e5 “should” have a data cable so try it (I mix and match my phones and cables so I don’t recall which one came with my e5).
Caveat about the size of the microSD card: your device determines the largest size card it can read (e.g., it may max out at 128GB instead of 256GB).
Check the memory card in your digital camera… it might be a microSD. It will say what type of card it is directly on the label. MicroSD cards are tiny, only slightly larger than the SIM card used to provide phone service (your e5 came with a SIM card).
Another tip for data transfers to computers: always use the strongest USB port.
If all else fails, check that the most current drivers are installed for your tablet (might be accessible under right click -> properties… or type “drivers” in the control panel search tool and select “update device drivers” under “Device Manager”).
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@fivetalents Memory card in my camera is SDHC or something like that. I had to buy a specific card reader for it cuz couldn’t just plug it into my computer.
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@my4mainecoons That’s too bad but maybe your card reader has a microSD slot so you have 1 less thing to address (given that a memory card is the easiest short-term and long-term solution).
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@fivetalents If I buy a 128 GB memory card am I correct that I might have to transfer in stages? If I buy a 256 GB memory card will the Fire just fill what it can? Are there slots to read microSD cards on most laptops?
(I know phone service has nothing to do with this, I was just referring to the phone I stepped on. As a device its a phone but that’s not what I use it for.)
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You really should be able to transfer directly to your computer without having to buy a card, although as mentioned the cards are handy. I just took the usb cable from my cellphone charger to test it, and plugged my Fire 10 into my computer. It loaded and then the Fire appeared in with my drives in Explorer (Windows 10). I double-clicked on the Fire icon and then it showed me the internal drive and my external microSD card. I could see the contents of the internal drive when I clicked that.
Also, my Fire 10 came with its own charger/usb cable, so you may have that around as well.
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@hbg1 I think I might know which was the cable that came with the Fire. I had no idea that there was a difference in cables until @fivetalents told me. I knew I had to be missing something, that I should be able to just plug the Fire into my laptop. When I tried with cheap cable I could see the Fire in my drives but wasn’t able to open it. First I’m going to try the cable I think came with the Fire. If that doesn’t work I’m going to try the cable that came with cell phone.
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@my4mainecoons said in How do I get pictures off of an Amazon Fire?:
@hbg1 I think I might know which was the cable that came with the Fire. I had no idea that there was a difference in cables until @fivetalents told me. I knew I had to be missing something, that I should be able to just plug the Fire into my laptop. When I tried with cheap cable I could see the Fire in my drives but wasn’t able to open it. First I’m going to try the cable I think came with the Fire. If that doesn’t work I’m going to try the cable that came with cell phone.
If that doesn’t work you could also try plugging it into a different computer if you have one accessible. If you can download the files to the other computer, then you can transfer the files with a flash drive to wherever you want.
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@my4mainecoons said in How do I get pictures off of an Amazon Fire?:
@fivetalents If I buy a 128 GB memory card am I correct that I might have to transfer in stages? If I buy a 256 GB memory card will the Fire just fill what it can? Are there slots to read microSD cards on most laptops?
(I know phone service has nothing to do with this, I was just referring to the phone I stepped on. As a device its a phone but that’s not what I use it for.)
To be reiterate, 64GB should be plenty enough to reduce the number of times you have to do a data dump to your PC. A larger card is only needed if you put a lot of files/data on your device. The card also lets you free up internal memory wherever you are (even with no computer nearby), quickly make backup copies of important files with no other equipment needed, and lets you transfer files between mobile devices without needing a computer. Even if any of the several trouble shooting suggestions I mentioned fix your tech problem, microSD cards are so cheap, reliable, and useful that it really doesn’t make sense to not have one.
I don’t know what you mean by “transfer in stages”… it’s a memory drive so you can select all and move/copy everything at once to wherever you want on the SD card (you can create folders on the card like with any drive). If you create multiple folders, yes you’d transfer files in stages grouped by topic/type, but you don’t have to. The tablet won’t automatically write files to the card unless you manually change the default location settings… for where each file type is saved… from internal memory to a specified location on the card (e.g., camera, screenshots, downloaded files).
Any laptop manufactured in the past dozen or so years should read microSD cards if they wave a built in card reader. Decent multi-slot readers are also very cheap though (~$5).
OK, I misunderstood your phone service reference and completely forgot about the phone you stepped on!!!
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Appreciate all the help. I signed up to trade in my Fire so I want to get the pictures off of it before I send it in. Amazon already gave me a $10 Amazon gc and I get 20% off a new Fire. Waiting for the next TCB $3/$10 or $5/$15 before I buy. With the new one being $59.99, 20% off, 8% back on Amazon devices through TCB and the $3 or $5 bonus it will end up being ~ $25 for the newest version including sales tax. The one I’m trading in was ~ $20 after the dust settled on Prime Day 2018. It still works just fine but for $25 why not upgrade? I emailed single photos to myself but there are some short videos of the cats (e.g. chewing my hair, bunny kicking my foot, etc.) that are too large to email.
@fivetalents: IDK if you knew this, but you can only use one % off discount per order on Amazon. I have 20% off a tablet. I also have 20% off if I use a Discover Cash Back point. Can’t use both. I can pay with Discover Cash Back points but I can’t use the promo for 20% off-- it kicks out the 20% off Tablet discount. I’d rather use the 20% off Tablet and save the 20% off anything.
I’m probably not going to use the Moto until the “smashed glass” phone’s battery dies. I just use it for iBotta so it may be a while. There are 2 NBPR rebates I can’t do because I can’t text but that hasn’t been enough of an incentive for me to call TracPhone. My year of service doesn’t matter on TracPhone right? Its not one year from purchase, correct?
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Regarding the memory card option for transferring, I don’t know what Fire device you have, but my 3 year old Fire 10 only has 32GB internal memory, so if you have something similar there couldn’t be more than that to transfer at one time. If you want to keep moving things off onto the card to free up internal space on the Fire without transferring to a computer, then a larger card would help with that.
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@hbg1 Purchased in 2018 and it has 16GB
I have plenty of memory left. Just want my cat videos before I send it back to Amazon.
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@my4mainecoons said in How do I get pictures off of an Amazon Fire?:
@hbg1 Purchased in 2018 and it has 16GB
I have plenty of memory left. Just want my cat videos before I send it back to Amazon.If you’re not keeping the tablet, I wouldn’t bother buying a memory card or card reader, no matter how cheap… unless you can use them for your e5,
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@fivetalents Absolutely. Its a last resort. I’m really hopeful that your first suggestion re: cable will be the answer. Its the “what” in “what am I missing?”.
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@fivetalents said in How do I get pictures off of an Amazon Fire?:
Yes, microUSB data cables and microUSB charging only cables look identical. It’s the internal components that dictate function (e.g., higher quality data cables transfer data faster).
Considering how cheap these are to manufacture, I don’t understand why anybody would make charging only cables. I am betting the difference in cost is on the order of pennies.
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1 Reply
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@dangeruss said in How do I get pictures off of an Amazon Fire?:
@fivetalents said in How do I get pictures off of an Amazon Fire?:
Yes, microUSB data cables and microUSB charging only cables look identical. It’s the internal components that dictate function (e.g., higher quality data cables transfer data faster).
Considering how cheap these are to manufacture, I don’t understand why anybody would make charging only cables. I am betting the difference in cost is on the order of pennies.
IMHO, it’'s manufactured demand: all cable are cheap to make so they intentionally make a hamstringed/less useful and/or poorer quality charging only version to justify price gouging what are really basic quality data cables. Consumers don’t feel cheated because they were deceived into believing they’re paying more for pricier features, a premium product, and/or prestige. A blatant example of this a while back was the ridiculously expensive Monster cables (including the gold plated ones). USB cable manufacturers are generally smaller operations and keep their over-pricing “within reason,” thus avoid the backlash levied at the ubiquitous Monster brand.
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I tried using the cable that came with the Moto. Still not finding any files on the Fire.
ETA: found a micro SD card in my stash. Installed it. Can’t figure out how to move photos from the tablet memory to the memory card w/o using Amazon Photos. Tried and failed setting up Amazon photos. Emailed a couple of single pics but the video files are too large.
Went back to the tablet which is still connected via the Moto’s cable. Now I can see the files! Guess I wasn’t waiting long enough. Thought it would see the tablet then see the files immediately. Who knows. But was able to move all the photos to desktop. Now to move them to ext HD where for back up.
Thanks!
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@my4mainecoons Glad everything worked out and thanks for posting your final results. My intro level Fire tablet is sock drawered because it is so slow/under-powered, so I’m not surprised that the issue did turn out to be that it just took forever for the files to load. Kudos on finding a microSD card… that’s like finding money in your laundry pockets!
