Cell phone cameras are fun and convenient and often provide the opportunity to snap a photo when you otherwise would not have had a camera at hand. Sometimes, these photos are worth keeping and sharing, in which case you might want to back them up to a compact disc. Using a computer capable of interacting with your cell phone, you can move your pictures from the phone to a disc.
Step 1
Remove the media card from the cell phone. The media card is where the pictures are saved and is usually located in a slot on the side or back of the cell phone. Do not touch the electrical contacts (the shiny metal on the back of the card), because oils from your skin could damage them and prevent proper data transfer.
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Step 2
Place the media card into a media card reader. There are different readers for differently sized media cards, but you should be able to find the appropriate reader at an electronics store or an online vendor such as Amazon.com.
Step 3
Connect the media card reader to the computer's USB input. The computer should automatically recognize the hardware, but if it doesn't, you may need to install drivers, which should come on CDs with the original packaging on the card reader. Drivers are simply software that allows the computer to communicate with certain devices.
Step 4
Open the media card from the My Computer menu. It will probably be titled something like "Removable Disk (E:)," though the drive letter could vary depending on how many removable drives you have already connected.
Step 5
Open the folder containing pictures. Depending on how the media card is formatted, the folder might be called "Media" or "Pictures," but it could be something else. Explore until you find a folder filled with .jpg files, as this is the most common file type for cell phone photos.
Step 6
Select the desired pictures. You can select multiple files at once by holding down CTRL and clicking.
Step 7
Copy the selected files. Either pull down "Copy" from the File menu or press CTRL + C.
Step 8
Insert the blank, writable CD into the CD-writing drive.
Step 9
Open the CD drive through the My Computer menu. The CD drive should have an icon of a CD next to it and will probably be labeled "DVD-Ram" or "CD-Ram" drive.
Step 10
Paste the picture files into the open drive. Either select "Paste" from the File menu or press CTRL + V. This process may take several minutes, depending on the number of files; a progress bar should appear to show how much time is left in the process.
Step 11
Press the "Write files to CD" icon in the upper left corner of the drive menu. This will initiate the writing process. You may want to shut down other applications you aren't using to allow for a smooth writing.
Step 12
Close the CD when the prompt appears asking if you want to do so. Closing the CD will allow you to view it on other machines. Keeping the CD open will allow you to write more files on the same computer, but it will not allow you to view the files using other computers.
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