Lenovo has carved out its space in the computer and smartphone market in the last couple of years. If you have switched to a Lenovo desktop, laptop, or tablet lately and are still getting used to its UI and features, read on. In this guide, we will discuss how you can take a screenshot on your Lenovo device that features Windows 7, 8, or 10 as the operating system.
Take Screenshots with Windows Built-in Tools
Irrespective of what device you are using, Windows built-in screen-capturing tools offer you the easiest way to take screenshots. In Windows 7 and 8, you have the regular Print Screen key function and Snipping Tool. If you are using the latest devices like Lenovo Yoga or Lenovo Ideapad that’s running Windows 10, you get an additional built-in screen-capturing tool called Snip & Sketch.
Let’s see what different screenshots you can take while using these built-in tools and functions on your Lenovo device.
Print Screen Key
Print Screen Key, often abbreviated as PrtSc on various keyboards, is the handiest way to take a screenshot on Lenovo 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.
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.
You can also use the Print Screen key to take the screenshot of the active window. If your Lenovo laptop/desktop has multiple windows open, you can take the screenshot of your current window 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 on your state-of-the-art Lenovo Thinkpad and Yoga machines. 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.
If your Lenovo device has 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 1-5 seconds while using the Snipping Tool on Windows 10.
Snip & Sketch Tool
Task Bar of Snip & Sketch Tool in Windows 10
Snip and Sketch Tool is only available in Windows 10. 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 between giving the input and getting the screenshot.
Take Screenshot with Third-Party Screen-Capturing Tools
You can also use third-party screen-capturing tools to take screenshots on your Lenovo device. However, the question arises: why bother to install a third-party application and also pay for it in some cases when you have different built-in screenshot tools of Windows?
The main reason for using third-party screenshot tools is the usefulness of their advanced screen-capturing features. For instance, they allow you to take the screenshot of an entire scrolling window, which is not possible with the standard Windows tools. Also, many of them come with a built-in editor that offers a host of editing and annotating features. We are going to discuss two third-party screen-capturing tools that you can use on any of your Lenovo desktop or laptop, including the latest series of Thinkpad and Ideapad.
- Greenshot
- Snagit
Using Greenshot on Lenovo Laptops and Desktops
Greenshot is a free, open-source 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.
Greenshot also allows you to export the taken screenshots directly to different Microsoft applications and upload them on different online platforms.
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 it, read our Greenshot review.
Using Snagit on Lenovo Laptops and Desktops
Snagit is another third-party screen capturing tool that you can use on your Lenovo devices for more advanced screenshot requirements. It is a paid application that comes with a free trial. Snagit is probably the only third-party screen-capturing tool that allows you to take both horizontally and vertically scrolling windows in any browser.
Its capturing cursor also features a shape detector that automatically detects geometrical shapes on the screen. You can also take multiple snippets in one go through Snagit. Besides screen capturing, it also offers screen recording. If you are using your Lenovo device to make how-to videos and guides, you will find Snagit useful.
To find out how to install and use it for all its features and how much it will cost you, refer to our Snagit review.
How to Take Screenshot on Lenovo Tablets?
On Lenovo tablets using Windows, you can take the screenshot as you do on your smartphone, i.e., by pressing two keys at the same time. Press and hold the Power button and the Volume down (-) button of your Lenovo tablet simultaneously to take a screenshot. The captured image will be saved in the Screenshot subfolder of Pictures in the system drive.
The screenshots taken on Lenovo tablets will be saved on this path.
C:\Users\[User’s name]\Pictures\Screenshots
We hope that this article will help you in taking screenshots on all the latest Lenovo devices without a hassle.
