Data Recovery Case Studies

[data-medics]

Hey guys, I've added a new section to my website that contains actual data recovery case studies. Only about 5 on there now, but I plan to keep adding to more as I work on projects. I'm actually just using this as my notes while I work on cases, but I figure it can have some nice SEO side effects as well.

If anyone else has studies that they'd like to share let me know. I'd love to add them to my site.
http://www.data-medics.com/data-recover ... udies.html

[helpdisc]

$750 for translator regen and You say my prices are insaine???

[data-medics]

For a SCSI drive that's a rush order, and is being done for the local government who taxes me to death, YES!

Listen, I didn't mean it as an insult when I referred to your "insane" prices. Only that your prices are high, and that's why many guys use their own custom solutions instead.

[helpdisc]

I know, but I could say exactly same sentence, because in my company banks pay same as private persons...tax office also etc etc...
That does not mean your prices are insane or that you are not good guy . I just wanted to point you how things have 2 angles. I tried to look angle from Chineese guy who steel from us and could not find it.
I can tell you why but this is not place for it.
Take care

[michael chiklis]

$750 for translator regen and You say my prices are insaine???

well...
in italy is even worse, here they charge 800€ for any type of issue on hdd, very few DR charge here 300/400€ for translator regeneration.

[data-medics]

Listen Helpdisk, you're free to charge whatever you want for your tools. That's the beauty of having your own business. I referred to your tools as "insanely expensive" because I can do the same exact thing using some custom shaped pieces of plastic that I made myself. (less convenient to use, but works all the same).

Plus I really think you'd make more money if you lowered your prices. For example, you sell your tools for a bit over $530 USD each. Which I'm guessing is about a $500 mark up from the actual manufacturing cost. (not counting overhead not related to the actual manufacturing). So if you sell 100 sets:

$500 markup x 100 sets = $50,000

But if you lowered your markup to say $200 and as a result sell 500 sets instead:

$200 markup x 500 sets = $100,000 (double the money).

It's true that the number of data recovery companies in the world is limited, but if the price is within reach of the do-it-yourself guys who won't seek professional recovery anyway, you'd probably sell a whole lot more. Probably would even sell to guys who are only gonna use it once, then resell on ebay after.

[helpdisc]

I am trying to finish nice with you but you do not let me.
I can say exactly the same to your case. And I know it for a fact that you can do data recovery for much much less.
http://www.helpdisc.rs/eng/pricelist

We use same tools, same donor parts, same cost and same internet. Plus you might have cheaper rent etc...
And iIcan do job you do for 3 times less. We have 200 drives a month x 200 euro...you do the math..
Thing you do not know is that tool does not cost us 30USD.
You do not know the process of making it or cost per hour. It takes 20h on a mashine to make one tool.
Ask around how much it cost hour of EDM wire CNC mashine in USA in Germany in Serbia or any place, You will get the price.
You do not know how much it takes to think about solution i.e. for Samsung head change tool. It took me 6 months.
2 years to make spindle replacement tool. Now hitachi 2.5 inch 6 months. You can trust me or no.

One thing also you do not know is how good the tool is. Everyone who used it once did change heads without it afterwords.
And there is hundred of people who can testify here on forum. If it does not mean anything to you it is ok...just ask around.
You can not even think about comparing plastic tool and i.e. 4 platter change tool for seagate. If you have been doing 10 heads swaps a day or more you would know how good it is. But , on my bad luck, you do not. Why because You have bought some cheep tool and did not like it, so you gave up on tools. Is it expencive , maybe , if there were such tools on the market i would never make them. Guess what, there were not.
If you want add me on skype i will tell you every step...just look how many animations we made how many manuals and videos.
What do you think how many wd is there with one platter? Do you know how many different heads...put it in a manual.
Everyone can draw a nike sign on shoes it can copy it to look like, but 50 years of development cost something.

If you think you know something you can not make right assumptions in case you started wrong. Try to find out what is correct and what is not.
You let your self to speak how much would cost tool that you never had in your hands witch has to be manufactures on mashines you never worked on ... I a lot of IFs. I am not some sales guys that today sells pc tomorrow head change tool tomorrow shoes.
We are here collages and do not sell name for nothing.
If you look good at that site you would see guy is selling WDC ramp tool for head change on Seagate drives...!!!???
You would see that he does not have any transport solution , because he trow away our boxes....Feathers on the tool should be tolerance of 0.02mm and you can not put tool on feathers like this guy does. That means he does not have idea about what he is doing, because it is a fake.

Anyhow do not wish to say anything against you. You have right to have your idea and to think what ever you want.
It is your right, but i ask you nice not to say something it is not correct , witch You did.
Nikola

[fzabkar]

I can say exactly the same to your case. And I know it for a fact that you can do data recovery for much much less.
http://www.helpdisc.rs/eng/pricelist

I don't understand your pricing.

For example ...

Electronics failure – recover the data by replacing the drive electronics
125,00 + parts used (DOS / WINDOWS)
175,00 + parts used (MAC / UNIX / LINUX / NOVEL...)

Why should it cost 50 euros more to recover data from a non-Microsoft file system, assuming that the problem really is just a bad PCB, and that the file system is intact?

[HaQue]

Why not send Data-Medics a loan tool, say a month trial and let him know the difference? I also try the cheapest way to get a job done, I cant afford many expensive tools, and if I can go to my parts room and make some dodgy PCB to tap a device or make a JTAG tool and use open source I will.

A good example is SDR... I have played with many DVB USB tuner cards $20 and made my own antennas... people say a USRP is MUCH better, a $1,000 or 5.. and are probably right, but little good it does me. thankfully some made a fantastic solution.. $300 but still even that is not an instant buy.

I bet if I used a USRP for a while, it would be hard to go back to the lesser devices.

You guys have a difference of opinion, which looks to be pretty tight without some new information... No problems haveing a disagreement, but maybe a "look, this is why I believe my tools are worth the money" tactic may win him over.

[jono-ats]

If you know anything about precision machining, and have actually worked with HDDSurgery products, their quality is second to none and the prices are fair. (We old-timers can compare them to the "multi-platter swap tools" sold by certain companies in India and China, which simply didn't work, and they were happy to take our money nonetheless).

I've bought their Seagate tools, and they are an elegant solution indeed, which prevent platter damage from start to finish.

Their head swap tools represent "best practices" and anything less is to a client's disadvantage, IMHO.

My two cents . . .

[helpdisc]

Good point, the same for :

Electronics failure

- unique ROM chip

175,00 +parts
225,00 +parts

Depending on the OS ....

Replacing/re-programming the ROM chip or the adaptive module wouldn't interfere at all with the FS.

What if the drive is encrypted by the user with truecrypt full drive encryption and the user states that he have windows installed and he have in fact Linux ?


When doing a logic file recovery or even file carving or fixing the file system, it would make sense ..... But .... charging more or less because of the file system on the drive when replacing a PCB or a ROM or even fixing a SA module doesn't sound very reasonable ...

Well it includes also Santa Cruise and otheres...and 10 years ago when we made there was no UFS explorer and you had to buy different one....also it is more complicated for us to copy data back to the same file sistem and it takes more time.
My point was not to comment somones work, this here is 2cond part of our talk started at some other forum...

[helpdisc]

Why not send Data-Medics a loan tool, say a month trial and let him know the difference? I also try the cheapest way to get a job done, I cant afford many expensive tools, and if I can go to my parts room and make some dodgy PCB to tap a device or make a JTAG tool and use open source I will.

A good example is SDR... I have played with many DVB USB tuner cards $20 and made my own antennas... people say a USRP is MUCH better, a $1,000 or 5.. and are probably right, but little good it does me. thankfully some made a fantastic solution.. $300 but still even that is not an instant buy.

I bet if I used a USRP for a while, it would be hard to go back to the lesser devices.

You guys have a difference of opinion, which looks to be pretty tight without some new information... No problems haveing a disagreement, but maybe a "look, this is why I believe my tools are worth the money" tactic may win him over.

well he just have to ask
idea is not to argue just to show there are always 2 sides, and one side is in dark one on light. You can not always be on suny side.

[hhddrec]

ooh, not disccus about pricess

a seller can put a price for a service or product, and if customer says ok. no more problem. seller and customer are agree. no more to speak.

helpdisc can get the price that he wants and data-medics too

[helpdisc]

I agree totaly

[data-medics]

I still can't believe how much flack I've gotten for that one comment.

I'm sorry HDDSurgery! You happy now?

[fzabkar]

also it is more complicated for us to copy data back to the same file sistem and it takes more time.

If there is nothing logically wrong with the drive, then just return the drive as is, or clone it sector-by-sector. Or am I missing something?

[helpdisc]

topic was something else...sorry for spaming, return to first post, ignore others

[scratchy]

The price argument is a common one. At one time we charged low prices with high volume. We ended up with double our original prices and got less work but more turnover, less costs. Finding the balance is the tricky part.

[thatdellguy]

For every post here I get an email from this ihddor person.

It is without a doubt that HddSurgery head tools are top of the line. For the time savings on each drive the tools are fairly cheap. If your not happy with paying for top of the line tools then make your own. We have been making our own solutions for many years. Sometimes you have to be creative and actually make your own custom stuff instead of waiting for someone to make it for you. Otherwise your just another one of these DR companies that comes and goes with the wind every year. DR is not a cheap hobby.

I totally agree with Scratchy, you have to find a common ground with price vs volume. Each economy will usually dictate that ratio.

[HaQue]

I still can't believe how much flack I've gotten for that one comment.

I'm sorry HDDSurgery! You happy now?

I see it as a good discussion, not flack, the topic got fleshed pretty good.