Screen recording · Searchable record

Scroll once. Search the visible conversation afterward.

A careful screen recording can capture a longer visible thread than individual screenshots. TextTrace selects useful unique frames, recognizes visible text, and builds a record for review.

Updated 2026-09-057 minTextTrace

Available on the App Store for iPhone and iPad.

01Bring in the source
02Review the record
03Choose the useful output

Record for the recognizer and the reviewer

Use steady, readable motion. Fast flicks, bouncing, pop-up notifications, video overlays, and hidden date labels create ambiguity. Begin before the relevant passage and end after enough replies to show context. If a message is long, stop scrolling until the full text can be read.

TextTrace removes unnecessary duplicate frames and sends necessary unique visual frames through its backend to Google Vision for visible-text recognition. It does not upload the whole original recording as a generic cloud archive.

Treat extraction as a draft

Speaker. Check left/right layout and names.

Time. Confirm only timestamps actually visible.

Text. Compare numbers, names, punctuation, and negations.

The selected recording stays associated with the record so you can return to the source. Temporary server copies follow the documented deletion flow after processing, cancellation, failure, or device acknowledgement.

Know what the recording cannot show

A visual recording cannot reveal deleted messages, hidden metadata, content outside the captured range, or who controlled an account. It may also miss a message if you scroll too fast. Export only after checking boundaries and samples. Use PDF for reading, CSV for filtering, or another supported format based on the recipient’s actual need.

Questions, answered precisely

Frequently asked questions

Does TextTrace upload my full screen recording?

The app prepares necessary unique frames for visual text recognition through its backend; the original selected source remains available for review under the product’s documented storage behavior.

Can the recording capture deleted or hidden messages?

No. TextTrace can process only content visibly present in the recording you select.

TextTrace

Turn the conversation into something you can use.

Import it. Check it. Search it. Export the format your next step needs.