Cards rarely go bad just by sitting in your desk drawer. Most cards will fail when you are using them for something. These failures occur at times such as during the middle of a burst write, during an in-camera format, halfway through copying files, or in a low quality reader that loses power. Depending on where this failure occurred, it could give us a good idea of the state of your data. In most of these cases all files remain physically located on the card even though the device reports that they do not. It would be best to bring us the card (or post it) instead of sending the camera.
Knowing which function the card was performing when it failed gives us a lot of information about the state of your data.
Loss of power to the card or removal of the card from the camera while it is still in the process of writing. Typically this causes damage to the file being written, with all information preceding it likely recoverable.
When a user performs a quick format, he/she creates a new file allocation table with the existing file images physically remaining. A quick format is one of the most recoverable things that can go wrong with a card.
An unpowered or failing reader dropping its voltage during the transfer. This will corrupt the file system on the flash memory as opposed to the flash memory itself. It would be worth testing another reader to determine if the issue lies with the reader or the card itself prior to determining that the card has failed.
Dashcams, trail cameras and CCTV write continuously to their cards. These cards will eventually go bad. They do so slowly. So, when your card starts to show signs of going bad it's time to take action.
This is not the first reference we have made to the construction problem. In terms of the physical construction of cards, this is usually the harder case to recover from.
Nearly all microSD cards manufactured over the past decade use a moulded die. This die contains both the controller and flash memory as a single unit with no separation. As such there is no removable chip to read on a programmer. Recovery involves locating the test points on the moulded die, connecting those points manually, then reading the raw NAND memory directly using those manual connections.
Standard-size SD cards and CompactFlash cards are more varied in design. In fact CF is truly discrete in most high-end cards for professionals, which makes it one of the more manageable formats we handle. Knowing this can be helpful in determining how you want to store your images.
This can have some significant implications for you when your cards fail. A broken card that snaps in two at the die is not recoverable, due to the fact that the entire device is essentially contained within the die. However, a USB stick that snaps in two is often recoverable.
Stop putting it back in the camera. Each time you put a damaged memory card back into the camera you could be causing damage by having the camera rebuild directories, mark bad sectors, or create an entirely new DCIM folder. Pull it out, put it away safely, and get some other cards in the meantime.
Two very different sources, one failure mode.
Cards more often come to us as a direct result of field research (as opposed to holiday travel), including ecological surveys conducted within the fenlands/Breckland areas, archaeological site recordings, drone and camera-trap imagery, and instrument data produced from instruments that write to SD rather than a disk. This type of information is often unrepeatable in a way holiday photos are not, as the survey period/window is closed, the excavation is filled-in/back-filled, or the season has ended.
The second category of data loss is an industrial type of loss. Data is being recorded by CCTV systems located within yard and packing facilities. Vehicle and equipment recorders, as well as cards used with agricultural machinery. For many years these devices were operated continuously in conditions no card is rated for and failed due to wear from continuous operation versus failure due to a specific event.
Recovering memory card information begins at a cost of £250 +VAT. At the lower end of this cost are logical failures and discrete CompactFlash. Monolithic microSD cards are at the upper end of this cost as they require test-point work, and the price charged is fixed after our free diagnostic.
When we work on memory cards, you only pay if we recover your data. Please send us the memory card rather than sending us the entire camera body. The body of the camera is not needed and increases risk while transporting your device.
It is very unlikely. A camera uses an in-camera format to write a new allocation table, but does not relocate the image data itself. If no additional information has been written since the format, then there is a high probability of recovering your data. Please stop using your memory card immediately.
Generally speaking, problems with file systems are the most common cause of this rather than actual failure of the flash media. Most of these situations are also recoverable. However, please do not allow the camera to either repair or reformat your memory card: doing so is the one action likely to make your loss permanent.
No, just the card. The body of the camera can provide no useful information but may be damaged during shipping. If the memory card cannot be removed from the camera's slot, we would prefer you send the camera rather than force it.
Generally, this type of damage is fatal to microSD cards as there is no distinction between the controller chip and flash memory; therefore, if it breaks across this single die (chip) then both are destroyed. However, with standard full-size SD cards, this is dependent upon which part of the card broke. We suggest you send it over and we will investigate without cost to you.
This is what is meant by “wear,” and it is something that is expected: constant writing wears down a memory card in a manner that typical usage patterns will not. There is also a good chance that data previously written to the card prior to failure will remain readable. Memory cards designed to withstand heavy usage have a significantly longer usable lifespan when used for this purpose.
Typically two to five working days will pass before we complete work on logical errors or discrete media, although monolithic microSD cards take longer due to manual connections under magnification.
£250 +VAT for each card, fixed at the diagnostic. Rather than taking it out of the camera at the end of your shoot, take it out straight away; on flash memory the window will close automatically, regardless of whether anyone is operating the device.