Looking at all of the variables that a skilled data recovery lab must take into consideration, it’s also simple to see why a flat-rate data retrieval cost doesn’t really pan out in real life as well.

The one difference between the two cases is in how much machine time it takes to pull the data off after the drives are up and functioning. Machine period, or the quantity of time our machines need to spend in a case, is comparatively cheap, at least compared to this time and effort our engineers must spend. On some level, a per-gigabyte data retrieval cost might appear to create sense.

There are a lot of things that cost more or less depending on the number of gigabytes of data you need to use, such as cloud information storage and backup, a data strategy on your phone, or your house internet plan. And after all, doesn’t recovering 5 gigabytes of information require less work than recovering 50 gigabytes of information — why wouldn’t the retrieval prices be reduced for less data?

In reality, though, a per-gigabyte data retrieval price model just doesn’t work. Say you have two identical hard drives, as an instance, and both have failed at the exact same manner. One, however, has 10 gigabytes of files and photos; the other has 300 gigabytes of TV series episodes. Both hard drives will require the identical amount of engineering time, or time a professional engineer will have to invest, to make the information salvageable.

The cost of data recovery varies depending on the situation–the more work which needs to go into a hard drive to get it up and running, the greater the cost must be–however many other factors influence the cost of data recovery as well.