Corrupt memory cards ask to be formatted, will not display in a camera or smartphone, and are at risk of losing the thousands of photos taken by the camera. Most of the time, photos on the card have been saved and are still good, as the card has a logical or controller fault. We recover SD, microSD & CF memory cards for all makes for Belfast & Northern Ireland, in-house.
When a memory card fails, immediately cease use: every image added/edited/written/deleted on the card may overwrite an image(s) you would like recovered. Remove the card from the camera or mobile device. Do NOT allow the device to repair/format the card. Bring it to our location. The less the card is used after failure, the better the chance of recovery.
Memory cards typically fail in a few well known ways (corruption, physical damage, etc.). Regardless of how your memory card failed, your photos are likely still recoverable.
We support all types of memory cards: SD, microSD, CompactFlash, XQD, and CFexpress.
All capacities and formats of memory cards (including SD, SDHC, SDXC, microSD, CompactFlash, XQD, CFexpress), supported by all devices: cameras, mobile phones, drones, dash cams, security surveillance systems (CCTV), and the Nintendo Switch, even those that use a completely sealed monolithic microSD card which needs direct access to the flash so that we can read it.
Recovery of a memory card involves finding the flash component of the memory card and rebuilding what was stored on it, primarily photographs and video. We fix or bypass the problem causing the loss of information, read the memory card or chip, and rebuild your photographs and files from a copy of the original information rather than reading from the memory card while it is still under load.
We will identify if the loss is due to corruption, a controller failure, physical damage, or just plain wear & tear, and determine how much can be recovered before sending you a written quote.
If there is some response left on the memory card (it has not died), we use a controlled reader to image that portion of the card read only. We do not write anything back to the card while imaging as this would likely erase what was remaining.
In cases of completely dead cards or monolithic microSD chips, we read the actual NAND chip itself at the chip level and recreate its scrambling method.
Once we have recreated the scrambling method for your memory card, we build the file system again, and carve out the photos and videos based off their signature marks where the file structures were destroyed; therefore your images should be able to open even if they were lost after being formatted.
Additionally, when applicable, partially written or cut-off photos and/or videos may also be repaired so that you can view more of your shot(s) without having to deal with them opening in pieces.
We check that all recovered images and files can be opened and will show you everything we have recovered prior to returning anything.
All of your photos and files will be returned on brand new (fresh) media or through our no-charge download service which allows you to retrieve up to 75 GB of information.
Whether it is a damaged camera card, a broken microSD card, a worn dash cam card, or a formatted phone card, we can recover memory cards of any manufacturer by direct read-off of either the memory card itself or the chip contained within the memory card. We rebuild your photos from an exact duplicate.
Give us some information regarding what happened to cause this issue, and an engineer will contact you. Usually within a single business day.
We will get back to you soon. If it is urgent, call 028 9002 0144.
Before we begin recovery, we provide a free diagnostic. Then we give you a fixed written quote for the cost of recovery. The cost to recover one memory card is £250 + VAT. In most cases you will only pay if we recover your data. If chip-level work needs to be performed, a 50% payment secures the specialist bench time. The remaining 50% is paid when we recover your data.
A sample of some of the memory cards we have recovered over recent years including various brands/types of memory cards and fault conditions along with examples of how well each was recovered. All customer names/addresses etc. are withheld.
Although the file system had crashed the photos themselves were still intact. We copied the memory card read only then rebuilt the images and successfully recovered the complete day's photographs.
Sealed with no separate board, chip level repair required, contacts found, flash read, and recovered the photos and videos.
Bent contact pin and a faulty controller. Interface fixed, memory card read, and full recovery of pro-shoot.
Years of overwriting wore out flash, we read good parts and rebuilt footage to recover necessary video clips.
Corrosion on contacts, chip okay. Cleaned, restored connection, and recovered all photos.
No data had been written since, therefore all images remained intact. Read-only image signature carve successfully recovered photos.
Send or drop off your item for a free diagnostic check with a description of the issue. One of our engineers will review the item, then provide you a written quote prior to doing any repairs.
Prior to sending or dropping off your device for a diagnostic test (free), obtain a quotation from us via telephone or using the provided form. Step one: get the device to our Belfast bench. Carefully wrap the device and include your contact information inside the parcel. Then send it over. There is no charge for this diagnostic service. Once we receive it, you will be given a firm written price to confirm whether you wish to go ahead, before any work is done.
Sending it? The use of a tracked, insured delivery method would be recommended. Alternatively, dropping it off can also be done Monday to Friday, 9am–5:30pm; no prior booking required but do ensure that all items are packed accordingly.
Still waiting to send something? Please complete the form describing the failure/fault in your own words and one of our engineers will get back to you with a quotation based upon your individual circumstances.
We will get back to you soon. If it is urgent, call 028 9002 0144.
What types of memory card recovery questions do we get asked most often?
Normally yes. Corrupted file systems normally damage how the pictures are stored on the memory card rather than destroy the pictures themselves. Therefore the pictures remain on the memory card; they simply become invisible. Once the memory card is imaged (read-only), we can rebuild the pictures. The key is to cease utilising the memory card when it becomes corrupted.
Normally yes. If the memory card will no longer display images, this means there is either a problem with the controller or the contacts within the memory card which damaged access to the picture storage. However, the flash (memory) containing your photographs remains good. We repair the connection (interface) to the controller or read from the memory chip directly for data recovery.
Often yes. MicroSD cards are typically a single sealed chip. Therefore even though the memory card may have broken, as long as the memory itself isn't shattered we can still read from it by locating the contact points on the chip and reading from the flash (storage area).
Generally not, if you react promptly. A quick format performed in camera only removes the directory listing associated with each picture while leaving all of the pictures present on the memory card. In addition, most memory cards do not utilise the TRIM function which would delete existing pictures. Therefore, immediately stopping further photography activity minimises the risk of an old picture being overwritten by a new picture; in fact, there is a high likelihood we can recover these pictures.
It takes £250 + VAT to recover one card; there are no charges for diagnostics. In most cases you will only pay if we recover your data. Cards that require "chip-off" have a 50% initial deposit toward the cost of the special bench time, but the remaining amount will also only be paid if we recover the person's data.
Yes, on most jobs. For all our services except when doing "chip-level" work, you only pay if we recover your data. When we do "chip-level," we charge a deposit for the special bench time, but again, the remainder is only paid if we recover the customer's data. In either case, we clearly indicate which service model will apply before starting the job.
All of them: SanDisk, Samsung, Lexar, Kingston, Sony, PNY and others, across SD, microSD, CompactFlash, XQD and CFexpress cards in every capacity, from cameras, phones, drones, dash cams and CCTV.
First see if you can nudge the physical slide switch on the card edge to release the lock; in many cases this resolves the error. If the write protection remains even after nudging it, then it likely means that the controller (the circuitry) inside the card has failed. A failure like this does NOT prevent us from recovering data: we can still read the card and pull those photos off.
Caution. If the card is physically failing, using DIY software may make things worse for the card. And if you let your phone or camera ‘fix’ the card they may overwrite some or ALL of the photos you are trying to recover. Don’t risk losing your pictures. Stop what you are doing and let us properly image the card so we can safely extract those precious photos.
A standard repair is usually available in 1 to 3 working days. Chip level repairs to a non-working (dead) card, or monolithic cards will normally take 4 to 7 days. The diagnosis will usually be completed within 48 hours, and urgent cases can normally be prioritised.
Cards can be brought in person to Cromac Square on weekdays from 9am to 5:30pm. Alternatively they can be sent by post. If posting please tape the card securely to a piece of cardboard and send inside a padded envelope. Please include your name and full postal address, your email contact details and your telephone number so that the card can be logged and we can run the free diagnostic and provide you with a quote for recovery in writing.
We charge fixed prices for all recovery services. Our standard fee is £250 + VAT per card, with the diagnostic free, and in most cases you only pay if we recover your data. All memory devices are recovered using our in-house facilities in Belfast. Whatever brand, whether it's a SanDisk, Kingston, Samsung, PNY, Verbatim etc. we recover them all (SD, microSD or CompactFlash) on our Belfast bench. So put the camera down and bring the card(s) to us.