If you have been using an Android smartphone or a tablet for a while now there must be 100s of images, videos and songs stored over there. Deleting them selectively using just your phone or your tablet might be a difficult task to achieve and since you are more used to handling files and data on your computer, why not first attach your android device to your computer and then delete those files? This way you will be easily able to navigate through various folders and delete those files.
Delete files from your Android device with a computer using USB Data cable
There are multiple ways you can connect your android device to your computer. If you want to use your data cable, you will first need to add the USB device driver that is appropriate for your device. Once you have installed the USB driver, you can connect your smartphone or tablet to your computer. Just make sure that you “Mount” the device after the connection has been made. This mounting you will have to do from your phone. As soon as the cable is plugged in and both your computer and your device are connected to each other, there will pop-up menu of choices (the new smartphones and tablets seem to figure this out on their own). Now open your Windows Explorer and you can see your phone appearing as a new drive. If you have also got an SD card, this will also show up as a separate drive. You can go to individual folders, or move them to your PC.
Remove files from your Android smartphone with a computer Wirelessly
You can also connect your Android smartphone to your PC in order to delete files wirelessly. For this you will lead to install an app called AirDroid. This creates a small FTP server on your Android device. After everything has been set up (you don’t need to do much) it gives you a web address or URL that you need to go to using your browser window on your PC. Once you have gone to the link, an authorization pop-up window appears on your Android device that you need to tap and once you have done that all your folders appear in your browser window and you can delete files or just move them around.
Delete files from your Android device with your PC by installing the proprietary software
Another way of deleting files from your Android device with your PC is by installing the proprietary software that comes with your device. For instance, most of the Samsung devices are shipped with their PC interface called Samsung Kies. It comes with all the necessary device drivers that once installed, let your PC seamlessly connect to your smartphone or tablet. Than everything is interface driven.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the advantages of deleting files from Android device with a computer?
The advantages of deleting files from an Android device with a computer are as follows:
- You can delete files without having to download any data recovery or data eraser apps.
- The deleted file’s space can be reused.
- You can delete large files (e.g. videos) that don’t fit on an Android device.
- You can use the file recovery software to locate and restore the deleted files if the phone is not working well.
What are the disadvantages of deleting files from Android device with a computer?
The disadvantages of deleting files from an Android device with a computer are the same as the disadvantages of deleting files from any device with a computer. The user is removing files that they may need in the future, which can lead to data loss.
How to avoid data loss when deleting files from Android device with a computer?
There is a way to avoid data loss when deleting files from Android device with a computer by installing and using an Android file manager on the computer to move all the files on the phone to the computer and then delete them from the phone. This way all the files will be saved on the computer for future use.