Many people consider a broken phone to be a catastrophic disaster. After all, we rely on them for so many things these days, from keeping in touch with friends to checking up on business emails when away from the office. While in an ideal world, you would regularly back up your data, very few of us actually do, so we end up panicking when our phone breaks and we can’t retrieve the information that we desperately need. If your phone has broken and there’s no way to fix it, keep reading. We’re going to explain three different ways that you can recover your data.
1. Restore from Backup
If you had the foresight to use a mobile backup service, you should be able to recover your data easily. There are a lot of different services that offer this, most operating in the cloud. Even if you didn’t use a backup service, however, you may still be able to recover some of your data. This is especially true if you use an iPhone – as most now come with a free amount of iCloud storage that is automatically applied for photos and videos – or if you use a Google phone, which offers a similar thing. This kind of data can usually be accessed by logging into your account from a computer. More specific backup services should have provided you with an account login and email that you can use to retrieve your data.
If retrieving your data from a backup isn’t possible, however, move on to step two.
2. Check Your SD Card
If you didn’t back up your phone, don’t worry; the data on your SD card may still be intact. Be advised, though, that it’s best to only go down this route if you’re sure that the SD card is free from cracks or any other physical damage as there’s a chance of making things worse. The easiest way to check your SD card is to place it into the SD card slot on your computer. You can also use an SD card reader if your laptop doesn’t come with an available slot. All being well, your computer will recognize the device upon entry and you’ll be able to copy all of your data from the card to your computer’s hard drive.
3. Data Recovery
Finally, you have one last option if the two previous ones haven’t yielded results; contact a data recovery company like Secure Data Recovery. A professional company has the software and skills needed to extract data from seemingly uncoverable devices no matter who the manufacturer is. Unlike commercially available software, too, they tend to be able to extract more information, including contacts, messages, audio, photo and video files, documents, and even call history. If your phone is badly damaged, you may want to skip the above steps and just go straight to this one for the highest chance of success.
Have you ever recovered data from a broken phone? Let us know about your experience in the comments.
Talha Ali is your tech generalist, covering a wide spectrum of topics within the ever-evolving world of technology. With a curiosity for the latest innovations, industry trends, and breakthroughs. Whether it’s hardware, software, emerging technologies, or the intersection of tech with daily life, Talha’s articles provide readers with a well-rounded perspective on the dynamic landscape of the tech industry.
