How can I recover deleted music from my Android without a computer?
Accidentally deleting music files from your Android phone is a common problem that many users face. With large storage capacities, people store entire music libraries on their phones. However, it’s easy to accidentally delete songs and albums by mistake, and not have a backup available.
According to research, around 70% of the mobile market uses Android devices (Source). With accidental deletions being common, this affects a huge number of Android users. The problem is made worse by Android’s process of overwriting storage space frequently (Source), making recovery difficult.
Losing your personal music library that you’ve built up over time can be devastating. While prevention is ideal, accidents happen. Being able to recover deleted music on Android without a computer can be a lifesaver for music enthusiasts.
Why Recovering Deleted Music is Important
Accidentally deleting music files from your Android device can be very frustrating. While streaming services like Spotify and Apple Music allow access to millions of songs, they do not actually give you ownership of the music files. Purchased digital music can be expensive to replace if accidentally deleted.
According to CNET, the average cost per digital music album is $10 from stores like Amazon Music and iTunes. Individual song purchases typically cost around $1. Rebuilding a large music library from scratch can add up fast.
Being able to recover deleted music allows you to regain access to music you rightfully own and avoid having to repurchase tracks and albums you may have already bought. This makes data recovery an important tool for any music lover who stores tracks locally on their Android device.
Checking the Recycle Bin
Unlike computers, most Android devices do not have a dedicated recycle bin for storing deleted files. However, some apps like Gallery and File Manager include a recycle bin feature to help recover recently deleted items. When you delete photos, videos, audio files, or documents, they may get moved to the app’s recycle bin rather than being permanently erased (https://www.wootechy.com/android-recovery/trash-on-my-phone/).
To check for deleted music files, open the Gallery app and look for the Recycle Bin option in the menu. There may be a trash icon or a Recycle Bin tab that shows deleted media. If you use a file manager app like Files by Google or My Files, there may also be a Recycle Bin folder. Browse the contents to see if your deleted audio tracks are recoverable from there (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RTwA7mGWECw).
Recovering files from the app recycle bin is as simple as tapping to restore the items. This should move them back to their original folder. However, keep in mind that app recycle bins have limited storage space. Files are only retained there temporarily before being permanently deleted. So check frequently after accidental deletion to improve your chances of music recovery.
Using File Recovery Apps
One of the easiest ways to recover deleted music without a computer is by using a file recovery app on your Android device. Apps like DiskDigger allow you to scan your phone’s internal and external storage to find deleted files that can still be restored. The key advantage of using a file recovery app is that it does not require root access to your device.
DiskDigger and similar apps work by scanning the raw data and deleted folders on your device to find files that have been deleted but not yet overwritten. For recently deleted files, the chances of full recovery are quite high. However, the longer you wait, the lower the chance of recovery as deleted space gets taken up by new data.
To use DiskDigger or related apps, simply download and install the app, grant it the needed permissions, and scan the desired locations on your device. The app will display all recoverable deleted files, allowing you to preview and restore your lost music back to active storage. Using the app requires no technical expertise and presents a quick, easy option for restoring accidentally deleted files.
Connecting to a Computer
One way to recover deleted music files on your Android without a computer is to actually connect your device to a computer. When connected via a USB cable, your Android phone will show up as a drive on the computer. From there, you can use data recovery software on the computer to scan the Android phone’s storage and restore deleted files.
There are many free data recovery programs for Windows and Mac that can restore deleted files from Android devices when connected. Some popular free options include Recuva, EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard, and Disk Drill. These tools scan the phone’s memory and allow you to preview and recover deleted files.
By connecting your Android phone to a computer, specialized data recovery software can help restore deleted files like music, even if you don’t have a backup. This gives you access to powerful file recovery tools without needing to root or alter your phone. Just be sure to stop writing new data to your device to avoid overwriting deleted files before scanning.
Using Cloud Backups
If you purchased music through a streaming service like Google Play Music, that music is usually stored in the cloud and can be downloaded again. When Google Play Music shut down, Google transferred all purchased music to YouTube Music [1]. To restore your purchases, simply log into YouTube Music with the same account previously used for Google Play purchases. YouTube Music should automatically have your music purchase history and allow you to download any previously bought songs and albums again.
You can also use Google Takeout [2] to export all of your Google Play Music data, including purchases. This will give you a downloadable copy of all your cloud-stored music that you can then manually re-upload to YouTube Music or another service.
Checking your Google account purchase history can help determine what music you bought through Google Play in case you need to manually search for and download your purchased songs again. So using the cloud backups from streaming services is often the easiest way to recover deleted music.
Enabling USB Debugging
One method for recovering deleted music without a computer is by enabling USB debugging on your Android device. USB debugging allows you to connect your Android phone to a computer and use data recovery software to scan the phone’s storage and retrieve deleted files. According to this guide, there are a few ways to enable USB debugging if you can’t access your phone’s screen:
- Use an OTG adapter to connect a mouse and enable USB debugging through the settings menu
- Use ADB commands to enable USB debugging from a connected computer
- Some phones allow USB debugging to be enabled through phone dialer codes
Once USB debugging is enabled, you can use data recovery software on a computer to scan the phone’s storage and restore deleted music files. Enabling this advanced option opens access to the phone’s file system for recovery tools. Just be sure to disable USB debugging again later for security purposes.
Using Data Recovery Services
If you are unable to recover the deleted music files yourself, you may need to use a professional data recovery service. Companies like 300dollardatarecovery.com and FlashFixers specialize in recovering data from damaged phones and storage devices.
These services can retrieve data even if your phone won’t turn on properly. The process usually involves disassembling the phone and accessing the memory directly. Pricing varies based on the device and how much data needs recovered. Expect to pay anywhere from $75 for an evaluation fee up to $500 or more for a full recovery.
The advantage of using a professional service is they have the expertise and tools to recover data in complex situations. However, it can get expensive. Check reviews and compare prices before selecting a data recovery service.
Preventing Accidental Deletion
One of the best ways to prevent accidentally deleting important music files from your Android device is to use a file locking or hiding app. A popular app for this purpose is LockMyPix, which allows you to lock down files so they cannot be deleted without a password. You can use LockMyPix to lock your key music folders or individual song files.
LockMyPixmoves the locked files into a protected secure vault, essentially hiding them from view in your regular file manager. Even if you accidentally delete the original file location, the locked copy in the vault will remain untouched. This provides an excellent safeguard against mistakenly losing your music library.
By selectively locking your most important music files using LockMyPix or a similar app, you can prevent any regrettable deletions. Just be sure to remember the password or PIN you set up, or you won’t be able to access the files either!
Conclusion
In summary, there are several options for recovering deleted music files from your Android device without a computer.
First, check your device’s recycle bin, as deleted files may still be there and easy to restore. If not, try a file recovery app designed for Android, like DigDeep or DiskDigger. These apps can scan your device’s memory and often find deleted files.
Connecting your phone to a computer and using data recovery software is another option, though it requires more steps. Backing up to a cloud service can also help you restore accidentally deleted files.
For advanced users, enabling USB debugging allows you to use Android’s adb commands to search for and restore deleted files. Professional data recovery services provide one last resort for retrieval, but come at a cost.
In the end, prevention is the best medicine – be cautious when deleting files and make regular backups of important data to avoid needing to recover lost music in the first place.