Surrey, BC · SD · microSD · CF · XQD · CFexpress
Your SD card won't read.
Your photos aren't gone.
A card that won't mount, "No memory card" error, accidentally deleted shots from a wedding or once-in-a-lifetime trip — SD card data loss is devastating and recoverable more often than people think. We work with all card formats at our Surrey lab. Free assessment. You only pay if we get your files back.
No Data, No Fee
All Card Formats
Camera, Drone & Dashcam
Free Assessment
Recovery Track Record
23K+
Devices Recovered
10+
Years Experience
Camera cards: Sony, Canon, Nikon, Fujifilm, Olympus, Leica
Drone: DJI Mavic, Air, Mini, Phantom, Autel, Skydio
Dashcam: Nextbase, Vantrue, BlackVue, Garmin, Thinkware
14935 100 Ave, Surrey BC · 604-767-1701
Not sure what's wrong?
Answer three quick questions and we'll tell you how urgent your situation is and what recovery path makes sense.
What's happening?
Select the option that best describes your situation.
What's on the card?
This helps us gauge urgency and priority.
Did you try anything yet?
Be honest — it helps us give accurate advice.
Common SD Card Failure Types
Every failure type has a different recovery approach. Here's what we see most often — and what we do about it.
Controller Failure
The SD card's internal controller chip dies. Card is not recognized by any device — camera, computer, or card reader. We read the NAND chip directly via chip-off extraction, bypassing the dead controller entirely.
Recovery Rate: 85%
Filesystem Corruption
FAT32 or exFAT partition table becomes corrupted — typically from improper ejection, power loss mid-write, or camera firmware bugs. Files appear invisible but are physically present on the NAND. High success rate with proper imaging.
Recovery Rate: 92%
Accidental Format
Card formatted in-camera or on a computer. All directory entries are cleared, but the actual photo and video data usually remains intact until new files are written over it. The window closes with every new shot taken.
Recovery Rate: 88%
Accidental Deletion
Files deleted in-camera or from a computer. The filesystem marks those clusters as free, but the low-level NAND data is still present. Every new photo written to the card risks overwriting recoverable data — stop using it immediately.
Recovery Rate: 91%
Physical Damage
Card snapped in half, contact pins bent or corroded, NAND chip exposed or cracked. We perform chip-off recovery under microscope — carefully extracting the NAND die and reading it with a dedicated chip programmer.
Recovery rate
68%
CF / XQD / CFexpress Cards
Professional formats used in high-end cameras — CompactFlash, XQD, and CFexpress — have different controller architectures than consumer SD cards. We have dedicated readers for all professional formats including Sony XQD and Nikon CFexpress Type B.
Recovery rate
73%
Our SD Card Recovery Process
Five methodical steps — your original card is never written to at any point.
01
Card Assessment
We inspect the card physically and logically using specialized SD card readers that report controller status, SMART data, and sector condition. Same-day assessment — you know where you stand by end of business.
02
Controller Test
If the card isn't recognized by any reader, we test the controller chip's response using low-level probe tools. A dead or unresponsive controller immediately flags the case for chip-off. We don't guess — the test tells us.
03
Raw Imaging
We image the raw NAND layer by layer before any file reconstruction begins. Your original card is never written to — all recovery work happens on the image. This protects your data against any recovery misstep.
04
File Reconstruction
The FAT32 or exFAT filesystem is rebuilt from the raw NAND image. We recover RAW photos (NEF, CR2, CR3, ARW, ORF), JPEG, MOV, MP4, and all common camera formats. You get a file list to verify before delivery.
05
Delivery
Recovered files are transferred to your USB drive or external hard drive. Your original card is returned to you. All copies and working images from our lab are securely erased after delivery.
No Data, No Fee: If we can't recover your files, you pay nothing. Free assessment always included.
What SD Card Data Actually Looks Like
Understanding why proper imaging before recovery is critical.
Every file on your SD card is stored as raw bytes — sectors of 512 bytes each. When a card 'errors', some sectors corrupt while others stay perfectly intact.
This viewer shows what that looks like at the byte level — and why proper imaging before recovery is critical. If you run recovery software directly on a damaged card, you can overwrite the very sectors you're trying to save.
We image the raw NAND first. Always. Then we reconstruct the filesystem from the image — your original card is never touched after intake.
- Blue bytes — healthy, readable sectors
- Red bytes — corrupt or unreadable sectors
- Green bytes — recoverable data identified in raw image
Every Card Type, Every Device
We recover SD, microSD, CF, XQD, and CFexpress cards from cameras, phones, drones, dashcams, and more.
DSLR / Mirrorless SD
Canon 5D/R5, Nikon Z/D-series, Sony A7/A9 — full-size SD and SDHC/SDXC
Video Camera CF / XQD
Nikon Z8/Z9 CFexpress, Sony FX series XQD, Canon C-series CF Type I/II
Phone microSD
Android expansion storage, dashcam microSD, action cam microSD (GoPro, DJI Osmo)
Nintendo Switch
microSD game saves and downloaded game storage — all Switch / Switch OLED / Switch Lite models
Dashcam SD
32 GB to 512 GB looping dashcam footage — Blackvue, Viofo, Garmin, Nextbase SD cards
Drone Storage
DJI Mavic/Air/Mini microSD, Autel EVO microSD, and other aerial camera storage
Industrial CF
CompactFlash Type I and Type II, embedded systems, industrial automation storage
USB SD Adapters
Reader-embedded SD/microSD combo drives — where the card and USB adapter are one unit
SanDisk
Samsung
Lexar
Sony
Kingston
Transcend
Toshiba
PNY
Delkin
Canon
Nikon
DJI
Why RecoveryMaster for SD Card Recovery
Six reasons photographers, videographers, and everyday users in Surrey trust us with their most important data.
01
NAND Chip-Off
Dead SD controllers are our most common card case. We physically remove the NAND chip and read it directly under magnification — bypassing the failed controller entirely.
02
Raw Sector Imaging
We image the full raw NAND before touching the filesystem. Every recovery attempt happens on the image — never on your original card. A failed attempt can never make things worse.
03
All Card Formats
SD, SDHC, SDXC, microSD, microSDHC, microSDXC, CompactFlash Type I/II, XQD, CFexpress — all handled in-house with dedicated readers for each format.
04
RAW Photo Recovery
We recover NEF (Nikon), CR2/CR3 (Canon), ARW (Sony), ORF (Olympus), DNG, RAF (Fuji), and all professional RAW formats — not just JPEG thumbnails.
05
No Data, No Fee
Free assessment, fixed quote upfront. If we can't recover your files, you pay zero. No hidden diagnostic fees, no partial-success charges.
06
Surrey, BC
Your card never leaves British Columbia. Local lab at 14935 100 Ave Surrey — drop off in person, get a same-day assessment, pick up your recovered files in person.
What To Do (and Not Do) Right Now
The next 30 minutes matter. Here's how to protect your recovery odds before you bring the card in.
DO These Things
- Stop using the card immediately after any error — every new photo risks overwriting recoverable data
- Label the card clearly so you don't accidentally reuse it before bringing it in
- Bring it in before running any recovery software — we image the raw NAND first
- Keep the card at room temperature in a dry container or original case
DON'T Do These Things
- Don't let the camera "repair" or "format" the card — this destroys filesystem metadata and reduces recovery odds significantly
- Don't run the card through multiple card readers repeatedly — each failed read attempt can stress the controller further
- Don't attempt chip-off with a heat gun at home — NAND chips use precision BGA soldering that requires professional equipment
- Don't install recovery software on the same drive you're trying to recover from — the software itself can overwrite your data
Common Questions
SD card recovery —
straight answers.
No fluff. Here's what people actually ask us.
Yes, in most cases — especially if you stopped shooting immediately. Deleted photos stay on the card until new photos overwrite them. The key is to stop using the card right now.
This usually means the card's filesystem is corrupted, not that the photos are gone. The raw data is almost always intact — the card just can't be read through normal means. We read it directly at the chip level.
Yes. DJI, Autel, and other drone formats use MP4 or MOV containers. A corrupted or incomplete video file can be reconstructed using the raw frame data on the card — we recover these regularly.
Possibly. The flash memory chips are very small and usually survive physical breaks. If the chips themselves aren't crushed or cracked, we can de-solder them and read them directly.
Probably not — most cameras do a quick format, which marks the space as available but doesn't overwrite it. Stop using the card and bring it in. A full format with multiple write passes is much harder to recover from.
Starts with a free assessment — no charge to find out what's recoverable. You pay only if we recover your files. Logical recovery (deletion, format) is typically $150–$300. Chip-off for physical damage or controller failure is $350–$750.