Picture recovery software review
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Stellar Phoenix Picture Recovery Review

The Good: This software has a fast preview tool that offers the scrolling option. All media types can be recovered as well apart from photos.  It works on a range of storage disks.

The Bad:  The program fails when deployed to recover corrupt photos, making it not suitable for all tasks.

The Verdict: The user interface and some of the features on offer make this tool decent picture recovery software but it is not ideal for all photo loss situations. 

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What makes Stellar Phoenix Photo great photo recovery software?

With Stellar Phoenix, it is easy to recover more than 65 different types of images, videos and audio. Added to the ability of recovering major photo types, the software is also able to run advanced scans, backups, etc. With the advanced scan feature, it is easy to pick the photo type you are looking so. So for instance if you have a collection of JPEG pictures you need most in the midst of hundreds of other photo types, you can quickly complete the recovery by searching for just JPEGs.  Also, the software makes it possible to choose specific parts of a drive to scan. This offers another way of improving results and reducing the length of time it takes for scans to be completed.

This image recovery software is able to create an image of the hard drive, memory cards or other storage device. This is equivalent to creating a backup and this ensures the safety of your device. The image created will make it easy to recover the device to its original status if anything goes wrong.

To begin the image recovery process, there is a wizard to take you through the three steps required to complete the process. The 3 step process is one of the major advantages of this software. The scan is fast and it is possible to stop and resume scanning with having to go through the process entirely.

On completion of the scan, you can look through the discovered photos using the preview option. This option makes it easy for you to decide what pictures you want to save and which ones you want to ignore or delete. All image types can be previewed irrespective of whether they are basic file types like PNG and JPEG or more professional photo types like RAW.

Depending on your exposure to this type of software, you will either get overwhelmed by the features loaded into the Stellar Phoenix Photo or be impressed by the ease of use.  To start the scanning process though, all you need to do is to connect the device and allow the software detect it. Click the scan button so that the software will begin the scan process.  When the scan is completed, you will be able to preview your lost or deleted photos and then you can continue the recovery process.  The buttons, tabs, etc. are decently arranged but they could do with more arrangement. The software looks cluttered due to the arrangement of the labels and buttons.  While many new users will find the software easy to use, a good number will not be able to know the right buttons to click without contacting customer support.

Using this, arguably not the best photo recovery software, there is a high possibility of recovering all your photo files at the first scan. This is because if supports a good range of photo types.  However, the number of photos missed by this software is quite high.  It is common to find out that 40% of lost photos did not get recovered even after they appeared in the preview thumbnails.  Unfortunately, once the recovery process is completed, it becomes almost impossible to find the lost pictures as they will be overwritten.  One way to deal with this problem is to filter your search adequately. This will increase the chances of finding the photos and also reduce the time it will take to complete the scan.

The company does a decent job with customer service as the website is properly laid out, showing contact information where it is readily accessible.  Reading through the FAQs on the website will provide you with a good idea of what you can expect from the software as well as answers to simple questions. If you want instant replies and to also save yourself the time to be spent reading through the FAQs, you can quickly chat with a rep on live chat. You can also send an email or call them up on phone.  The knowledge base also does a good job at providing information on the tool and its different repair options. There is no tutorial on the program so you have to be online to use any of the support avenues on offer.

Why choose Stellar Phoenix as your image recovery program?

  • Wide range of supported file formats
  • Fast scan and recovery
  • Decent customer service
  • Disk backup and imaging

System Requirements

  • Processor: Pentium Class
  • Operating System: Windows 8 / 7 / Vista / XP / 2000 / NT
  • Memory: GB recommended
  • Hard Disk: 50 MB of free space

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