SanDisk is the name on a huge share of the global market for flash storage: SD and microSD cards in cameras and phones, Cruzer and Ultra USB sticks, and the Extreme portable SSDs. Recovering flash memory is a specialist job, very different from recovering hard disk drives, and one of SanDisk’s product lines has suffered well-publicised reliability issues. What is recoverable from SanDisk products, and how it is recovered, is outlined below.
SanDisk specialises in flash technology: memory cards, USB sticks and portable SSDs. Card and USB stick recoveries are often performed at chip level, while a failed Extreme portable SSD is an SSD recovery, so please include the entire unit when you send it.
SanDisk (now owned by Western Digital) is predominantly a flash memory brand, which is important to consider during recovery, as flash devices do not behave at all like spinning disks. The product line includes SD and microSD cards (the Ultra and Extreme ranges for cameras, drones, dashcams and phones), Cruzer and Ultra USB sticks, and the Extreme and Extreme Pro portable SSDs. Each has its own failure patterns and recovery process, so they are best addressed individually.
Modern memory cards and many USB sticks are monoliths: the controller and flash memory are moulded together into a single unit, rather than being separate components on a small circuit board. This changes how we approach recovery entirely. When a memory card or USB stick is physically dead, or the system cannot detect it, there is no board to repair; instead, we recover the data by reading the flash memory directly and applying the controller’s logic to rebuild it, which is delicate, specialist work. If the card mounts but appears to be corrupt, software may be able to carve the files off; when it is completely dead, it is a chip-level job. Either way, it is the same territory as recovering any corrupt memory card or formatted media. A memory card or USB stick starts from £250 +VAT.
One SanDisk product line deserves some blunt language. Certain models in the SanDisk Extreme and Extreme Pro portable SSD lines (from around 2023) suffered well-documented failures, with users experiencing a sudden disconnection and the loss of all the content stored on the drive, a widespread problem that made the news. This was not user error: if your portable SSD has failed due to this issue, you’re certainly not the only person affected by it. Recovery happens at the SSD level, reading the flash and reassembling your data through the controller’s logic, with the same SSD caveats around TRIM and encryption. Because these are sealed, encrypted units, please send us the whole drive rather than opening it yourself. A failed portable SSD costs from £300 +VAT.
Even when a card or stick appears to have been destroyed (snapped connectors, cards through the washing machine, sticks that aren’t detected at all), flash recovery is possible, because the actual data resides in the flash chip, which often survives damage to its packaging. The recovery is performed at chip level and is precise work, but it frequently produces good results. SanDisk cards and USB sticks are priced from £250 +VAT; a failed Extreme portable SSD costs from £300 +VAT. As always, each item gets a complimentary diagnostic and a fixed written quote up front, and in most cases you only pay if we recover your data, so it makes sense to have a dead card full of irreplaceable photos evaluated before you dispose of it.
Yes, often, even when it looks destroyed. Modern cards and sticks are single units with the controller and flash memory fused together, so recovering a dead one involves reading the flash chip directly and reconstructing the stored data, which is a delicate operation but frequently succeeds. A card that reads as corrupt may be recoverable using software. Cards and USB sticks are priced from £250 plus VAT.
No, not if you wish to keep the files. A card that says it needs to be formatted can often still be recovered, but formatting will wipe that chance. Do not keep reinserting the card while trying to mount it; instead, set the card aside and send it in for recovery. Frequently, a card that won’t mount normally contains recoverable files. Recovery costs from £250 plus VAT, following a complimentary diagnostic.
Possibly. Certain Extreme and Extreme Pro portable SSDs had a well-documented problem whereby they would simply disconnect without warning and lose data, so this was not caused by anything you did. Recovery treats it as an SSD-level problem, reading out the data in the flash and rebuilding it. Please send us the entire sealed unit rather than attempting to open it yourself; recovery for a portable SSD starts from £300 plus VAT.
Frequently, yes. The data resides within the flash memory chip inside the outer casing, and the chip will often survive the same disasters that destroy the casing, such as snapped connectors or water damage. The flash memory chip is read directly during our chip-level recovery process. Please do not try to dry the device and resume using it again and again; set it aside and send it in. A card or stick is from £250 plus VAT.
We charge from £250 plus VAT for a SanDisk SD card, microSD card or USB stick, and from £300 plus VAT for a failed Extreme portable SSD. The amount charged depends on the fault and will be confirmed in a fixed written quote once the device has been examined as part of a free diagnostic, and in most cases you only pay if we recover your data.
Is your card dead, your stick snapped, or your Extreme portable SSD failing? Do not format it, and do not keep inserting and removing it. Just send it in (SSDs whole) so we can examine it and tell you what data is recoverable. Free diagnostic and a fixed quote first.