The short answer: Save the whole conversation, not just screenshots. The export should show who sent each message, with the date and time, and include any pictures. Do it before you delete anything, reset your phone, or switch phones. Then give your attorney the export along with a record of what’s in it. EvidentlySo does this on Android: it copies your messages into your own Dropbox and makes a dated PDF of the conversations you choose.
Why the whole conversation matters
A single screenshot shows a few messages with no context. It usually leaves out the date, the messages before and after, and sometimes who sent what. If the other side says something was cut out or taken out of context, a screenshot can’t answer that.
A full export shows the conversation in order, with every message’s sender, date, and time. Nothing is cropped, so there’s less to argue about.
Your options on Android
1. Screenshots
- Free and fast.
- Easy to crop, and often missing dates and context.
- Hard to read when there are many of them.
2. Your phone’s built-in backup (Google or Samsung)
- Good for moving messages to a new phone.
- You can’t easily read it, choose conversations, or print it. It isn’t made for court.
3. A dedicated export tool
- Makes a readable file of your conversations, usually a PDF.
- Tools differ in where your messages go. Some upload them to the company’s servers. Check before you choose.
What a good export includes
- Every message in the conversation, in order
- The sender, date, and time of each message
- Picture messages
- The phone numbers or contact names involved [REVIEW: does this match what the export actually shows?]
- A record of exactly what’s included, so no one has to guess what’s missing
- A way to show the file hasn’t been changed since it was made
Step by step with EvidentlySo
- Download EvidentlySo from evidentlyso.com/download. It’s free to download and set up.
- Connect your Dropbox. Your messages will be saved to your own account, not ours.
- Allow the app to read your messages. Android asks for this. It’s how the app copies them.
- See what it found. The app counts your messages and conversations right on your phone.[Screenshot: scan result screen]
- Tap Capture and buy ($50 + tax). The app copies your text and picture messages into your Dropbox.[Screenshot: the Capture button]
- Export. Pick the conversations and dates you need. EvidentlySo makes a PDF showing each message’s sender, date, and time, plus a record of what was included.[Screenshot: export conversation picker]
Every export includes a digital fingerprint of the capture file it came from. “The fingerprint lets anyone with the archived capture file confirm it is the exact, unchanged file this PDF names as its source. It does not show the capture is complete. For example, messages deleted from the phone before capture won’t be in it.”
[Screenshot: sample PDF page, made-up data only]
What to give your attorney
- The PDF of the conversations that matter
- The record of what’s included (it’s part of the export)
- Where the original capture is kept (your Dropbox), in case anyone asks to check it
Ask your attorney how they want to receive it. Don’t post it online or send it to the other side yourself unless your attorney tells you to.
Common mistakes
- Deleting messages, even ones that seem unimportant. Once they’re gone from the phone, a capture can’t include them.
- Resetting, trading in, or switching phones before capturing. See Before you switch phones: keep your texts.
- Relying only on screenshots. See Screenshots vs. a full export.
- Waiting. Capture as soon as you think you’ll need your messages.
Does EvidentlySo work on iPhone?
Not yet. EvidentlySo works on Android only for now.
This is general information, not legal advice. Ask your attorney how to present messages in your case.