Beware and run away from this fraud! I called Tim and spoke to him about my hard drive issue. I had installed a backup software and it supposedly ran my hard drive so hard that it caused a malfunction. I told him that I took my drive to another local technician and that guy thought it was it a connection issue where it plugs in. But a day later, that guy said it was not and something that he couldn't work on. That's why I contacted Tim because he had better technology to work on newer drives. When I brought the drive in, he looked at and didn't see any visible issues with the physical aspects of the drive. He bragged and boasted about how he's gotten 99% of his customers data back. He talked about how he works with 2 types of people- those who want their data back and those who go through all lengths to make sure their data is lost. At the time of drop off, Tim said he was waiting for a new board to be delivered, that was OUT FOR DELIVERY at that specific time. He would know by the end of the day if he could get my data back, and to stop panicking... everything will be fine. A week went by without any communication so I called him for an update. He hadn't even started my job yet. He blamed it on slow delivery and "the war in Russia..." I called another week later and the new board finally arrived and that he would need a few days and my drive would be ready. Another week later and he said he had to send my drive to the FBI in West Virginia because his new board was not working. I didn't realize the FBI was 'for hire' on data retrieval. Funny, right? It was Friday and he said the drive would returned on Monday. And yet, still no update until another week later. My hard drive is all of sudden broken and none of their tools can help retrieve data. Tim says a "microscopic " scratch and break is why my data cannot be read. He sends me pictures of the broken piece. I can see it in the photo and he would have seen it when I dropped it off. So now he blames the original technician. My drive was NOT broken when I dropped it off but it was returned broken to me. Tim is full of fancy stories...retrieving data that has been smashed by hammers and run over on purpose by cars, thrown in lakes and dropped down 15 stories! He works for the "FBI" and can get any info. Yet...this tiny little scratch is preventing him from getting my data. I think his stories are fake! I don't think he even attempted to get my data. Tim kept saying to me "it's gonna cost some money..." I make tons of money and was willing to invest whatever I needed to get my 2 years worth of data back. Maybe Tim thought I couldn't afford it or maybe he just likes to tell stories. He made matters worse. He is not a professional. He just a guy that copies data and actually lives inside his office with his mattress and curtains. Thursday, March 31- First attempt to pick up my drive and he's not there. I call and he answers in a perky tone, then when I say my name, he's all of sudden changed his tone and he's sick. But he'll be in tomorrow Friday. Wednesday, April 6- second attempt to pick up my hard drive. I call and ask if he will be there and he promptly says YES! Then asks "who is this?" And soon as I told him who I was, he said "I won't be in until much later. I'm still fighting a cold. Like 330pm." I guess that's when the cold is scheduled to end. He said he's going to send me the drive with a tracking number. But given his history of poor communication, I didn't trust him. So we drove over anyways and I had my husband go knock on his door. And guess who's there? Yep, that's right...Tim answered the door for my husband and my hard drive was sitting on the desk. I should have listened to the other reviews. Let's face it...not everyone has great reviews when it comes to data retrieval. I took the one with less risk and as it turns out, these issues with Tim are way more common. I messaged other people who got the same service from Tim and they all said the same thing...delivery, wars, FBI, and a little scratch all got in the way. read more

My hard drive stopped working unexpectedly. I took it to Data Retrieval in hopes to recover years of precious photos and data on the hard drive. Tim was so kind and patient, and went above and beyond my request to try to recover data lost, updating me as he worked on the drive, and gave me a fair price. He also took time to explain why the hard drive wasn't working and answered all questions. I highly recommend Tim's expert service when in the need of data retrieval. read more

This is the absolute best place to go for help with a damaged drive, lost data, and majorly important help when you have a serious data recovery issue. I was hesitant at first because you want to make sure you are going to the best place and getting the best value. I found it here and then some. Data Retrieval in Temecula was able to save all of our files, photos, etc., we are talking years and years of work and memories that we had lost due to serious hard drive damage. It was literally a catastrophe until we found Tim and he saved the day! He is honest. Fair. and extremely talented and knowledgeable. Before this experience, I was very concerned that all was lost and I might lose more money on top of the data I had lost. It turned out that this was the best deal imaginable - the value he has restored to us is incredible and the price reasonable and fair. We were so happy with his service that we left him a huge tip on top of the fee for his work. He is 100% our first choice if I ever have another difficulty with my data storage. read more

Tried to transfer my data from my old WD My Book to the cloud and could not get my drive to stay powered long enough to do the transfer. Tried several things on my own and then decided to call Tim at Data Retrieval. He gave me a price range over the phone and was able to get me in right away. 3 business days later he had it fixed, transferred to a new drive, and ready for pick up. I thought the price was fair and the turn around was super fast. Tim was very friendly and helpful. I would recommend his services. read more

Tim did a great job on my external hard drive. Highly recommend!

I had a similar experience as the other 1 star review. We dropped off the memory cards on a friday and said we'll have an answer by monday. Monday we dont hear anything. I wait a few days and call. He said he was out sick and he'll get back to me. I wait a few more days and nothing. I called several times, left VM noone returns my calls. I keep calling he says the data is so large on the card that its taking a long time... He needs a day or two. Still nothing, i keep calling. He finally says he's unable to get any data off the card. By now it's taken so long I just want to get my cards back. We come pick up the cards. Turns out he gives us someone else's card! I finally get in touch with him and he just says sorry and to come back. This whole ordeal took 1 month when he initially said couple of days. Don't over promise and under deliver. What a waste of time. read more

So my hard drive started making weird thumping noises...it was going to crash little did I know. Took my computer to two places and they couldn't retrieve the data. But the second place I took it to gave me the name of a company they said I should try. Data Retrieval, data recovery specialists. The guy told me it wouldn't be cheap and could cost over $1000 or more. But pics of my dog when a puppy, novel I'd started, and family pics were all at stake, so I called this company. Glad I did! The guy at Data Retrieval--Nicest guy (!) talked to me over the phone, explained what might be needed and a bit about the process in layman's terms so I'd understand. So I mail him my hard drive...with hope. I get a call a few days later. "We were able to restore your hard drive!" I said, Really!" He says, "Yeah...all of it....it's all back." Man! Was I ! I paid him, lot less than I was expecting. He says he charges more fairly as an act of conscience. Told him he was raised by a good mother. He agreed. Few days later, I receive all my data back on a external hard drive. I plug the drive in and waa laa! There it all is! He even talked me thru on the phone how to find it where....(I'm not so computer savvy). So to him a big thanks! read more

I thought I was being smart... After my hard drive crashed a little over a year ago, I decided that I would "protect" myself by storing my client files onto a thumb drive and working exclusively from that. I mean, what are the chances that my thumb drive is going to mess up?? Turns out, the chances were pretty good, as i discovered one morning when my thumb drive could no longer be read by either my desktop or laptop. HELP!!!! I am dead in the water without access to those files (yes, yes, I know NOW to back up the thumb drive!). I called Data Retrieval and they told me to come right down, which I did. I met with Tim...he immediately plugged it into one of his computers (one with the fancy magic software programs), and it started copying files. not only were my files salvageable, but it was all going to be fixed and ready to go in about 3 hours!! Ii came in later, picked up the new thumb drive that he transferred the files to, and I was back in business!!! (He also gave me the old thumb drive and told me to hold onto it as well --- plus he stores the info for 30-days as a "just in case" back-up). And, per Tim (and I quote) it only cost me twelve million dollars!! (Ok...a little less than that. the cost was actually quite reasonable). i highly recommend Tim and Data Retrieval if you have any computer-related issues. read more

My wife's computer decided to just not boot one morning. After the initial panic, I called Data Retrieval *on a holiday weekend*. Tim got back to me before the end of the day. We got our data back! Tim is personable, efficient, and knows what he is doing. Highly recommended. read more

I've had people contact me recently telling me they are going through the same thing I went through. Please run away

I take tons of photos and do lots of editing. One day, I could not view the photos on my camera SD memory card. I had TONS of photos on this memory card. Many of them were very near and dear to my heart. Tim was able to retrieve the photos on my memory card in a short amount of time. His customer service was great. I would highly recommend him if you find yourself in a similar situation I was in. read more

The prospect of losing years of precious information on your computer is both scary and stressful. Hiring a complete stranger to "do the right thing" where price gouging could literally take place "in the blink of an eye" is about TRUST. The professionals at DataRetriveval in Temecula, CA. (not only) recovered the majority of the files on my hard drive in less than a week. But the job was completed at very reasonable price, and I felt safe from the minute I made my appointment. I highly recommend Tim and the friendly folks at DataRetrieval who exuded a trustworthy vibe and did yeomans work from "day-one" to "job-well-done!" (A+) Thanks again! read more

Tim did an outstanding job recovering our external hard drive. Our hard drive went out on us close to 10yrs ago. I had debated throwing it away but I had pictures and memories of loved ones that have passed that could not be replaced. Im glad I hung on to it all this time because Tim was able to recover 99% of the drive. I cant thank Tim enough for his time energy and effort. Tim is affordable and his turn around time is outstanding. I would give him a chance to recover your data. I am thankful we did ! read more

This is my review for Tim and his data services. I had previously went to another service to get my drive fixed and they said it was unrecoverable. I went to Tim and he was able to diagnose and fix my drive saving most of the information. He was very knowledgeable and got the job done. He's the best out there for data retrieval. I would recommend his services to anyone. read more

I dropped a 4TB external hard drive that was half full of data and was unable to retrieve any data. Tim was able to work his magic and retrieve 99.9% of the data. He was very informative during the process and answered all my questions. I would highly recommend Tim and Data Retrieval. He'll get the job done. read more

I had a flash drive that corrupted and I was not able to access needed files. Unfortunately, I did not have a recent back up of the information needed. I contacted Tim and he was able to recover the data for me not only for a reasonable price, but in an efficient time frame. He is friendly, knowledgeable, and I am very pleased with his service. I would definitely recommend, and will use his services again in the future if needed. read more

Tim did a fantastic job recovering my data! I definitely recommend him for his fast and friendly service.

Tim at DataRetrieval was recently able to salvage 99% of my files from a crashed PC hard drive. His was the third company I had tried and I was losing hope when the first two failed. Tim not only recovered the data, but did so quickly, kept me in the loop about how long it was taking and when I could expect the files, and even met with me on a Sunday to give me my data. He answered all of my questions, gave me a list of the files that were not salvaged (fortunately nothing important), and acted in a courteous and professional manner. I knew it would be fairly expensive, but he charged me less than I feared and I know I got a good deal. I highly recommend Tim and DataRetrieval for all of your data recovery needs. read more