HP has always been considered the best option for laptops that boast impressive specs at reasonable price points. Whether it is an HP Pavilion, Elitebook, Envy, or Stream, the Palo Alto-based company caters to all personal and professional laptop and desktop users.
If you are new to HP devices and want to learn how to take screenshots on them, then read on. We are going to discuss various free and paid methods to take screenshots on HP laptops and desktops.
Free Methods to Take Screenshots on HP Laptops and Desktops
If you are using Windows 7, 8, or 10 on your HP laptop or desktop, then you have many free options to take a screenshot on your device. First, you have Windows’ own built-in features and apps. Then some free third-party applications are also available that let you take screenshots with more advanced features.
Print Screen Key
Print Screen Key, often abbreviated as PrtScn or Prt Sc on keyboard layouts of HP laptops, is the easiest way to take a screenshot on devices using any Windows version. When you press this key, it captures the entire screen and copies it on the clipboard. From there, you can paste it directly into other applications.
Using Print Screen Key to Take and Save a Screenshot
You can also use the Print Screen key in a hotkey combination to take a screenshot and save it as an image file on the device. Press the Windows key and Print Screen key simultaneously to capture and save the screenshot as a separate image file.
Using Print Screen Key to Take Screenshot of an Active Window
You can also use the Print Screen key to take the screenshot of the active window. If your HP laptop/desktop has multiple windows open, then you can take the screenshot of the window you are working on by using a hotkey combination of Alt and Print Screen keys.
Snipping Tool
Snipping Tool in Windows 7 and 8
Print Screen Key is undoubtedly the easiest way to take screenshots, but it doesn’t offer additional features that you may need in certain instances. You can either capture the full screen or a full window with the Print Screen key. For further features, you need to use the Snipping Tool.
Snipping Tool was around for many years, but it truly became popular with the arrival of Windows 7. With Snipping Tool, you can capture any part of the screen by drawing a rectangular snippet through a mouse cursor. It also allows you to highlight the part of the taken snippet. You can also use it to save and export the captured shot directly to your email.
Snipping Tool in Windows 10
If you are using the latest HP Pavilion or Envy device with Windows 10, its Snipping Tool will have two additional features: capturing modes and delay. Snipping Tool in Windows 7 and 8 only allows you to make rectangular selections. In Windows 10, you get to choose between, rectangular, window, free-form, and full-screen snips. Moreover, you can add a delay of up to 5 seconds while using the Snipping Tool on Windows 10.
Snip & Sketch Tool: An Exclusive Free Screen-Capturing Option for HP Devices with Windows 10
Task Bar of Snip & Sketch Tool in Windows 10
Snip and Sketch Tool is only available in Windows 10. Go to Search Bar in the bottom left of your HP desktop/laptop screen and search “Snip & Sketch.” Microsoft is planning to make it a default screen-capturing tool in all upcoming versions of Windows. Its features are more or less the same as the Snipping Tool except for the marking feature and a longer delay. You can use Snip and Sketch to get a 10-second delay for taking the screenshot.
Greenshot: A Free Third-Party Screen-Capturing Tool
Greenshot is an open-source and free screen-capturing tool that also offers impressive sharing and editing features. You can use this third-party tool to capture the snippets of the screen with pixel precision. You can also take screenshots of scrolling windows on Internet Explorer via Greenshot.
Main Working Panel of Greenshot
Greenshot also allows you to export the taken screenshots directly to different Microsoft applications and upload them on different online platforms.
Editing Panels of Greenshot Image Editor
The last Windows version of Greenshot was released in August 2017, and you can download it here.
To find out how to install and use this application, read our Greenshot review.
Premium Method to Take Screenshot on HP Laptops and Desktops: PicPick
If you are using your HP Elitebook or HP Stream devices in a professional setting where simple screen-capturing doesn’t suffice, you can look for paid third-party screen-capturing tools. Here, we are going to suggest one name: PicPick.
Home Window of PicPick
PicPick is a premium screen-capturing tool for devices using Windows 7 and 10. Besides offering screen-capturing that includes scrolling window screenshots, this tool gives you a host of editing, annotating, and sharing options. You can pick color codes of the objects and images appearing on your screen using PicPick. You can also use it to measures the size of different objects/icons on the screen.
It also lets you use your screen as a whiteboard. We also like PicPick because it is also available in a portable application format where you can use it without downloading it on your HP device.
To find out how to install and use this screen capture tool, read our PicPick review.
