How we chose what is on this page
Everything below is a real recovery, described from a review a customer left on our Google Business Profile. We have not written these, paid for them, or asked anyone to change what they said.
We think that distinction matters. Testimonials written by the company they praise are easy to produce and worth very little — which is why so many recovery sites have them. What you see here is attributable: each case carries the name the customer published on Google, and you can go and read the original for yourself. Our overall rating, 4.9 stars from 909 reviews, is the live figure from that same profile.
Two honest caveats before you read on. First, these are the outcomes people chose to write about, and satisfied customers write more often than disappointed ones — that is true of every review set anywhere. Second, a good outcome here does not predict yours. Two identical drives with identical symptoms can end very differently depending on how far the damage went and what was tried before we saw it. The only thing that tells you where your drive stands is the free diagnosis.
We do not describe what was in anyone's files. Cases identify the device and the fault, never the contents, and business customers are never named without written permission. If your recovery is ever written about here, it will be because you published a review yourself.
Real recovery case studies
Each of these is drawn from a verified 5★ review on our Google Business Profile. Names are shown as published on Google; outcomes are stated only as the customer described them.
16 years of memories off a failed external drive
A WD My Passport holding 16 years of work and family photos stopped working. Melissa and the engineering team worked to retrieve almost all of it — around 99% — in a short turnaround.
✓ ~99% recoveredData back after a "motherboard failure" verdict
An iPhone 14 failed suddenly; another shop diagnosed motherboard failure. Our engineers were patient with the damaged phone and recovered all of the data the owner feared was lost.
✓ All data recoveredA photo library that wouldn't open on a MacBook
A photo library on an external SSD stopped opening on a MacBook. Sarah called to explain the likely procedure and the approximate cost upfront before any work began. On inspection there was no fault with the drive, so nothing was charged.
✓ Drive tested healthyPrecious family photos off a faulty USB
A faulty USB drive held irreplaceable family photos. The team kept the customer updated through the process and recovered all of the contents.
✓ All contents recoveredRecovered after auto-shutdown & boot loop
An iPhone 12 Pro shut down suddenly and got stuck at the Apple logo; the store's only advice was a reset. Our team recovered the important data from the failed device.
✓ Data recoveredEverything restored from a failed laptop
A laptop failure put important files at risk. Sarah stayed attentive to the customer's questions throughout, and the team restored all of the data.
✓ All data restoredPhotos & videos off a water-damaged phone
An iPhone X went into water holding important, un-backed-up photos, videos and memories, after a usual repairer flagged the motherboard. CBL took on the recovery.
Seriously damaged drives, hard-to-source parts
Two badly damaged hard disks (a WD and a Toshiba) needed rare donor parts. The team took the patience and care to source the parts and work through the recovery.
✓ ~95% recovered99.9% back from a QNAP RAID 1
A QNAP RAID 1 came in with data its owner could no longer reach. The team recovered 99.9% of it, and kept the process transparent from the quote through to the return.
✓ ~99.9% recoveredThe only copy, back in two days
A NAS became inaccessible and a reboot changed nothing — and it held the company's only copy. CBL quoted within half a day, took it on as an urgent case, and recovered up to 98% of the data within two days.
✓ ~98% recovered in 2 daysAll files back from a Drobo that would not start
A Drobo RAID device stopped starting up. After the initial check the findings were discussed openly — including the possibility that the data might not be recoverable — and the owner was kept informed throughout. Every file came back.
✓ All files recoveredOver 95% off a failed NAS
A NAS fault brought the owner to CBL. Melissa listened through the technical background of the failure, the owner was updated regularly on progress, and over 95% of the data was recovered.
✓ 95%+ recoveredA card that died without warning
A microSD card went dead suddenly. Almost 100% of the data was recovered, and the owner checked through the files before any payment was made. Rather than have them wait in the office for a slow transfer, the team delivered the drive to their home.
✓ ~100% recoveredBadly damaged, and nothing could detect it
A 128GB microSD card from a Samsung phone was badly damaged and would not detect — not in the phone, and not through a card reader on a laptop. The photos, documents and years of memories came back, and the owner was able to check the files before confirming.
✓ Photos and documents recoveredTold to format — but nothing was actually wrong
A microSD card started prompting to format on the owner's phone, locking them out of photos and videos they thought were gone. A free diagnosis found every file still on the card and no major fault with it. The advice was to back up immediately, and there was no charge.
✓ All files still on the card7–10 days quoted, back the next afternoon
A memory card with hardware damage went in for a free diagnosis and had its status within hours. The estimate was seven to ten days, but the team understood the urgency, offered express handling with a student discount, and returned all the files by the next afternoon.
✓ All files recoveredImportant data off a decade-old corrupted card
A ten-year-old SD card had become corrupted. The team recovered the piece of data that mattered, keeping the customer updated through the process.
✓ Data recoveredA camera card that two readers could not read
A company camera's SD card suddenly would not show its photos and videos, and would not read on a computer — through two different card readers. The files were recovered within a few days of walking in.
✓ Files recoveredVerified Google reviews
Short excerpts from real 5★ reviews. Read the full set on our Google Business Profile.
"Great relief the engineers managed to recover all my data successfully from my damaged iPhone 14."
via Google"Amazing service from CBL. They have restored all the data from my laptop. Sarah was very helpful and attentive to my queries."
via Google"Thank you to the team at CBL for helping me recover all the contents from my faulty USB, which contained many precious family photos."
via GoogleThese are genuine reviews from our Google Business Profile, shown as customer testimonials. Our 4.9★ / 909 rating reflects the full set.