How to Save Contacts on a Samsung Android Phone

Are you looking for a way to make sure that all of your contacts are securely backed up and safe on your Samsung Android smartphone? Here is a list of some of the best backup methods available.

Saving Contacts to your Memory Card

If you have a memory card in your Samsung device then that’s one of the best places that you can save contacts to. Most Samsung Android smartphones have a memory card slot so if you don’t have a memory card for some reason then I recommend you invest in one. Not only can you save your contacts to a memory card but also your pictures, music, applications, videos, you name it. It makes transferring information so much easier and keeps your current information nice safe and secure should your phone malfunction or break.

If you’re interested in investing in a memory card for your Samsung Smartphone, which I recommend you do if you don’t have one, then you might like to read about what memory would be best for you.

To save your contacts to your SD Card it’s pretty simple.

Quick Instructions:

Contacts > Menu Key > Import Export > Export to SD card > Ok

Detailed instructions:

Contacts – Access the phones contact list as though you were going to pick someone to call or text. Some phones have a Contacts icon on the Home Page (the main screen you see when you power on your Samsung phone). If you don’t have a Contacts option on your Home Page then access the Applications then look for the icon that says Contacts and open it up.

Menu – Tap on the phones menu key. On Samsung phones it’s usually on the bottom, under the display, and to the far left. It’s right next to the key that looks like a house (home key). It usually looks like 4 little squares or half a square with a few lines underneath it.

Import/Export – Once you tap on the menu key you’re going to see some options pop up on the display. Things like Delete, My Profile, Sync Contacts, Merge with Google, Import/Export, and More are going to be showing on the screen. Go ahead and tap on the Import/Export option.

Export to SD card – after pressing on the import/export you’ll see a list of options. your going to want to tap on Export to SD card.

Ok – You’re probably going to see a “Are you sure you want to export your contacts to SD card?” message. If you do then just press Ok.

Once you press Ok the process is usually pretty quick. When it’s done it will take you back to your contact list and you will have a copy of your contacts saved onto your memory card.

Saving Contacts to your SIM Card

The wireless provider you use will determine whether or not your phone has a SIM Card or not. Wireless providers that use phones that run on GSM technology require SIM Cards to function. AT&T and T-Mobile both use SIM Cards in their wireless devices. Verizon and Sprint phones don’t have SIM Cards.

Quick Instructions:

Contacts > Menu key > SIM Management > Copy Contacts to SIM > Select all > Copy/Done > Ok

Detailed instructions:

Contacts – Access the phones contact list just as you did when backing up your contacts to a memory card either through the Contacts icon on the Home Page or through the phones Applications.

Menu – Tap on the phones menu key also like you did when saving to the SD Card it the key bottom left under the display.

SIM Management – click on the SIM Management option. If you don’t see a SIM Management then click on More and then tap on SIM Management.

Copy Contacts to SIM – Tap on Copy Contacts to SIM. It should then show a list of your contacts.

Select All – Tap Select All. It’s usually towards the top of the display above your contacts. After you tap Select All then the phone typically will add little green checkmarks next to all your contacts to let you know that they are all selected.

Copy – Then on the bottom there should be a Copy option. Click on copy. If it doesn’t say Copy then it might say Done or Export so click on that option instead.

Ok – you might get a confirmation message that says something like “Some information might be lost”. The phone is letting you know that only names and numbers are going to be saved. Any Fax numbers, addresses, user photos, emails, etc on or associated with that contact won’t be saved onto your SIM Card. The SIM can typically only hold names and numbers, and usually only about 250 contacts. So if you have over 250 contacts on your phone then make sure you look into the other two backup methods mentioned in this article.

Saving Contacts to your Gmail Account

This might be the best way to save contacts from your Samsung Android Smartphone; simply because chances are your contacts are already backed up to it. Contacts are set to automatically sync to your Gmail account by default.

First you want to check to make sure you know your Gmail account. That way if you need to log back into the phone after performing a reset or if you need to log into it on a replacement Android phone you will know what your account actually is. Many users set it up that one time when they first got their phone and never really needed it since and have forgotten their information. If this is you then don’t worry ill guide you through the process.

Check your Gmail email aka username

To check to see what your Gmail account actually is you simply go into the phones Settings and selecting Accounts & sync (it might even just say Accounts). On that page it will show the Gmail Account you used to setup the phone. It will look something like somthingsomthingsomthing@gmail.com. Write it down if you don’t recognize it. Keep it somewhere where you can get to it should you ever need to perform a Factory Data Reset on the device, or log into a replacement Android phone.

Check to make sure contacts are synced  

Once you check your Gmail account, writing it down if you need to, then go ahead and actually click on that account. Once you click on your Gmail account it will pull up a bunch of options as to what your Gmail actually backs up. It should have options like Sync Contacts, Sync Google, Sync Calendar, etc. make sure that the Sync Contacts option shows the days date. If it doesn’t show the date then click on sync contacts. It usually shows a little spinning circle to let you know that it’s syncing. Give it a minute to sync then once it’s done it should then show the days date. If the Sync Contacts deselects when you click it then click it again to get it to manually sync. Once it shows the days date your done and your contacts are saved onto your Gmail account.

Note: if you’re unsure as to whether or not you remember your Gmail password then go to mail.google.com and try and log into it. If you can log into it on a computer then you can log into it on your phone with no problems. If you can’t log into it on a computer then try and guess the password, when it lets you know the username and or password is incorrect towards the bottom it will have an option like “having problems accessing your Gmail account” click on that link and go through the steps to reset your password. You need to be able to log into your Gmail account in order to sync your contacts to your device.

Enjoy

These are the three best ways to backup your contacts on your Samsung Android Smartphone. If you need to know how to backup your pictures and videos as well then you can learn how to do that here. Otherwise try and backup regularly, don’t text and drive, update your operating system when new updates become available, watch what apps you download, and enjoy your Samsung Android smartphone.