How to Create Animated GIFs on a Samsung Galaxy Phone

Samsung phones come with built-in tools for creating GIFs from your own images and videos. Here's how to use them.

GIFs are a really fun and creative way to liven up content and make it more interesting. They can be a part of your email signature or presentation, or pinned on your social media profiles to add a touch of personality. But how do you make your own?

Creating your first GIF has never been simpler—because now you can create them directly from your Samsung Galaxy phone. We'll show you how.

How to Create GIFs From the Samsung Gallery App

Samsung makes it easy to animate video files and photos stored in your device's Gallery app. Let's take a look at how this works.

Create GIFs With Video Files

You can make and share your own fun, memorable GIFs from short video clips. To do this, follow the steps listed below:

1. Launch the Gallery app on your Samsung Galaxy device.
2. Select a video of your choice and tap on the Play video option at the bottom of the screen.
3. Once the video starts playing, tap anywhere on the screen and select the GIF button in the top-right corner to open the basic editor. Drag the sliders to trim the video or select a specific portion of the video to create a GIF.
4. Tap the 1.0x button to slow down or speed up the playback rates. There are also slower and faster playback speeds—0.5x and 2.0x respectively.
5. Tap the arrow icon to cycle through the GIF's available playback direction options. You can choose to play it forwards, reverse the GIF, or play it in both directions.
6. Tap on Save to save the GIF to your smartphone when you're done.

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Create GIFs From Images

Have you always wanted to create an animated GIF from your favorite pictures? Well, now you can do it right from your Samsung Galaxy phone, and even add a variety of effects. Here's how to do this:

1. Open the Gallery app on your device, and select the images of your choice.
2. Tap the three-dot More button on the bottom panel and select Create > GIF.
3. Within the editor, you can adjust the playback speed and direction and other settings as you like. You can also go on to add a number of effects such as shapes, date stamps, expressions, stickers, and more to spruce up your images even further.
4. Once done, tap Save. The GIF file will be saved to your device.

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How to Create GIFs Using the Samsung Galaxy Camera App

You can create GIFs with just a few taps using the default camera app on your Samsung Galaxy device. Here's how you can do this:

1. On your device, launch the Camera app.
2. Within the app, tap on Settings (the gear icon) at the top-left corner.
3. Tap Hold Shutter button to and select Create GIF from the dropdown options.
4. To start recording shots for your GIF, hold down the Camera/Shutter button and release it when done. The file will be automatically saved to your device.

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How To Create a GIF Using Smart Select on Samsung Galaxy Phones

Samsung devices offer a feature called Smart Select that makes it easy to clip, collect, and share content, and includes an easy-to-use GIF tool. You can extract images or parts of the screen to create animated GIF files. You can also personalize your GIFs with text and stickers provided on Galaxy devices.

Related: The 5 Best GIF Keyboards for Texting and Emojis on Android

The Smart Select feature can only be accessed via Samsung's Edge Panels application. The Samsung Edge Panel is a UI element in the form of a translucent bar that gives you quick access to apps, contacts, and widgets that you use frequently. Let's take a look at how you can set this up.

1. On your Samsung device, navigate to Settings > Display.
2. Scroll down and toggle on the slider for Edge Panels and tap on it.
3. Now go to Panels > Smart select.
4. Find an image or video file or anything that you wish to convert into a GIF.
5. Swipe right or left across the edge of the display to access the Edge Panel. You should be able to view a list of options. Select Animation.
6. If you're trying to create a GIF using YouTube, Smart Select will automatically highlight the exact frame. You can also manually drag the corners to select the part of the video you need.
7. Once done, tap on Record to start.

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In addition to the above methods, you can also use third-party apps to create GIFs on your smartphone.

Capturing Moments Has Never Been Easier

We live in a world where we want information and entertainment delivered quickly. If you are looking for a way to make your social media content pop or want to capture something special at the touch of a button and share it with friends, then animated GIFs are the way to go.

You can create these great moments in seconds without having to fiddle around with editing software because it is all right there on your Samsung phone.

About The Author

Cheryl Vaughn (17 Articles Published)

Cheryl is a Content creator and strategist with a focus in lifestyle, mobile applications, and digital media. She has reviewed tech products and applications for content, usability and accessibility. She works closely with individuals and businesses to design campaigns that connect brands with customers using the appropriate mix of words and visuals.

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