MacBook Data Recovery in Downtown Chicago (Apple Silicon & Intel)

On all T2 (2018–2020) and Apple Silicon (M1–M4) Macs, the flash storage chips (NANDs) are permanently soldered onto the logic board and hardware-encrypted to the processor. The only way to access your files on a dead Mac is to repair the board's power and data circuits at the component level so the Mac can boot or enter Target Disk / DFU recovery mode. For a detailed comparison of board-level data recovery versus full logic board replacement, read our Apple Store Michigan Ave vs. Arbor Mac Guide. If your Mac powers on but cannot find a bootable disk, consult our MacBook Flashing Folder Question Mark Guide.

Every recovery starts with our $150 non-refundable bench triage (2–24 hours average), which is 100% credited toward your final recovery quote ($250 to $500 on average, or up to $900 for catastrophic board damage). Standard recoveries follow our No Fix, No Fee policy on the remaining balance—if we cannot extract your files, you owe nothing beyond the $150 triage fee.

Initial triage takes 2 to 24 hours, and full board-revival data recovery takes 2 to 6 weeks on average. Once extracted, you verify your critical folders and files before the project is finalized.

Yes—under our Privacy Policy, data recovery is one of the few services where your macOS login password or FileVault password is required so we can unlock the encrypted APFS volume and copy your files to an external drive once the board is revived.