DriveSavers (https://drivesaversdatarecovery.com/) is the first data recovery company with over 30 years experience, located in California and offering data recovery services worldwide. Founded in 1985, DriveSavers provides different tiers of data recovery services for all devices and storage media, from simple photo recovery to complex cases of RAID, NAS, and enterprise data recovery. They are known as data recovery experts and pioneers in the industry, with capabilities to recover data even after physical damage, deletion, corruption, or encryption. In 2018, DriveSavers was the first data recovery company to win an innovation award from the Flash Memory Summit for their advanced skills with SSDs, flash drives, and more (https://drivesaversdatarecovery.com/drivesavers-wins-2018-flash-memory-award/).
Data Recovery Service Tiers
DriveSavers offers three main tiers for data recovery service: Economy, Standard, and Advanced [1]. Each tier determines the priority level, turnaround time, and methods used for recovering data.
The Economy tier is the most affordable option, with an estimated 5-7 business day turnaround time. This tier uses logical and clone-based recovery methods. The Standard tier prioritizes jobs within 1-2 business days using both logical and physical recovery methods. The Advanced tier is the premium service, placing jobs at the highest priority with specialized engineers and the full range of logical, physical, and forensic recovery techniques. Turnaround is typically 24 hours or less with the Advanced tier [1].
Factors Affecting Cost
The total cost of data recovery through DriveSavers depends on several key factors related to the drive itself and the type of data loss scenario.
The type of drive – whether it’s a hard disk drive (HDD), solid state drive (SSD), USB flash drive, etc. – plays a role in determining cost. In general, SSD recoveries tend to be more expensive than HDD recoveries due to the more complex nature of SSD technology. Recovering data from physically damaged drives also tends to increase costs.
The size of the drive is another consideration, as larger drives take more time and effort to recover data from. DriveSavers charges per recoverable gigabyte for most recoveries, so larger drive sizes equal higher total costs.
The specific type of data loss or device failure also impacts pricing. Logical recoveries, where the drive hardware is intact but files are corrupted or deleted, tend to be cheaper than recoveries from drives with physical damage. Rebuilding the drive from scratch is more labour intensive and factors into the price.
Overall, DriveSavers provides customized quotes based on a diagnostic of each unique case. But in general, complex SSD recoveries, larger drive sizes, and drives with physical damage can increase the total data recovery costs. The type of data loss plays a pivotal role as well.
Average Cost Estimates
DriveSavers offers tiered pricing for data recovery services based on the type of failure and complexity of the recovery process. According to DriveSavers’ own pricing page, here are some average cost estimates for common data recovery scenarios:
For a failed hard drive from a laptop or desktop computer, customers can expect to pay anywhere from $500 to $3000 on average depending on the tier of service. Standard recoveries of failed hard drives tend to cost $1200 to $2100.
For SSD data recovery, costs are typically higher ranging from $1000 to $5000 on average due to the more complex nature of SSD failures. Standard SSD recoveries range from $2500 to $3500.
For RAID recovery, DriveSavers estimates a range of $2000 to $15,000 depending on the RAID level and number of drives. The average RAID 5 data recovery costs $3000 to $5000.
Recovering data from iOS devices like iPhones and iPads averages $1000 to $4000 for DriveSavers. Standard iPhone data recovery is around $2500.
In general, costs go up for proprietary storage devices with non-standard failures. The range gives a rough estimate, but final pricing depends on a full diagnostic.
Economy Tier Pricing
The Economy tier from DriveSavers is the most budget-friendly option, with a flat rate starting at $299 for data recovery from hard drives and $199 for solid state drives https://drivesaversdatarecovery.com/drivesavers-pricing-and-recovery-costs/. This tier has an estimated turnaround time of 5-7 business days for hard drives and 10-14 days for smart devices and SSDs.
The Economy tier supports all operating systems and types of drives, but has a lower success rate compared to the higher tiers. It’s best suited for situations where budget is the top concern and the lost data is not mission critical. The Economy tier only includes labor, so any parts needed would be an additional fee.
Standard Tier Pricing
The Standard tier is DriveSavers’ most popular service level. It balances cost, turnaround time, and capabilities for most data recovery situations. According to DriveSavers Pricing and Recovery Costs, the Standard tier has a starting cost of $600 for mechanical failures and $1900 for logical recoveries.
Standard tier pricing is determined by the storage device type (HDD vs SSD), interface (SATA, IDE, etc.), and capacity. The base rate covers inspecting the device, attempting the recovery, and returning data on an external hard drive. Costs scale up from the base rate depending on factors like encryption, RAID configuration, and the amount of data recovered.
The Standard tier offers an industry-leading turnaround time of 5-10 business days. It can recover data lost due to accidental deletion, formatting, corruption, software issues, malware, and more. The Standard tier is able to access and extract data as long as the drive powers on and has no physical damage to the platters or chips.
Advanced Tier Pricing
The Advanced tier is DriveSavers’ top-level service for complex cases requiring extensive engineering and custom solutions. Prices start at $2,900 for hard drives and go up from there depending on the storage device and difficulty of recovery.
Some key aspects of Advanced tier pricing include:
- Hard drive recoveries start at $2,900.
- Flash drive recoveries start at $3,900.
- SD card recoveries start at $4,900.
- RAID recoveries start at $7,500.
Advanced cases often involve significant internal damage to the storage device, so DriveSavers engineers may need to repair or rebuild critical components. This requires specialized tools, custom engineering, and extra time – hence the higher costs. According to DriveSavers, the Advanced tier has the highest success rates for challenging recoveries.
Additional charges may apply for expedited service, extensive data reconstruction, or special parts needed during recovery. However, if the data is unrecoverable, DriveSavers does not charge any fee.
For a cost estimate tailored to your specific recovery case, customers can contact DriveSavers for a free evaluation.
Add-On Services & Fees
DriveSavers offers various add-on services and fees beyond the base data recovery service tiers. Some common add-ons include:
- Expedited Service – For faster turnaround time, expedited service starts at $500 additional fee according to DriveSavers Pricing and Recovery Costs.
- Hard Drive Repair – If the hard drive has physical damage beyond just data recovery needs, DriveSavers may need to repair issues like firmware damage, which incurs an additional minimum $500 fee per comments on Reddit.
- Head Replacement – For drives with severe head damage, a head replacement costs around $1000+ in parts and labor based on Reddit threads on DriveSavers repairs.
- Clean Room Fee – For drives opened in an advanced Class 100 clean room environment, an additional minimum $500 fee applies according to DriveSavers.
Customers should check with a DriveSavers technician for specific add-on service fees that may apply to their unique data recovery situation.
Discounts and Promotions
DriveSavers offers a variety of discounts and promotions for certain organizations and groups. They have partnership programs where partner organizations can receive discounts on DriveSavers’ services for their members. For example, through the Digital Arts Partner Program, members of participating digital artist organizations can receive a 10% discount on DriveSavers services.
DriveSavers also frequently runs seasonal promotions around major holidays and events. For example, they have offered discounts for Valentine’s Day, Father’s Day, Mother’s Day, Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and more. These promotions usually involve percentage discounts on certain service tiers or add-ons.
In addition, DriveSavers occasionally offers flash sales and limited time discounts that are promoted on their website and through email newsletters. Subscribing to their email list is a good way to find out about short-term discounts and coupon codes.
Conclusion
In summary, DriveSavers offers tiered data recovery services ranging from $500 to $2,900 or more, depending on factors like device type, failure cause, and amount of data recovered. Their most affordable Economy tier starts around $500 for simple cases like deleted files from storage media. More complex cases involving mechanical failures or extreme damage can cost over $2,900. However, they do offer free evaluations and won’t charge if data is unrecoverable. Overall, DriveSavers provides reputable, high-quality data recovery with pricing on par with competitors, albeit on the expensive end. For budget-conscious users, lower-cost providers may be preferable, though likely with lower success rates. In complex cases where data is truly critical, DriveSavers remains an industry leader worth the premium price.