Memory Card File Rescue
Memory Card File Rescue is Sony software that attempts to recover data from Sony memory media after accidental deletion or damage.
What Memory Card File Rescue is
Memory Card File Rescue is Sony software that attempts to recover data from Sony memory media after accidental deletion or damage. It supports photos such as JPEG, Sony ARW, Nikon NEF, Canon CR2 and CR3, and 3D MPO, along with videos including MPEG, MP4, XAVC S, AVCHD, MOV, MXF, and XAVC HS. Documents are also supported, but game data and content-protected music or movies are not. Listed media include Sony CFexpress Type A and Type B, XQD and SD cards, Memory Stick, SL-M series external SSDs, and USB flash drives, subject to exceptions. Sony says its recovery method may improve the chance of restoring files but cannot guarantee success. The software cannot repair physical damage to a card, and files on media formatted by a computer or camera may not be recoverable. Recovered files are saved to a PC and may not play on other devices. The free software has Windows and macOS installers listed as version 3.4.2. Listed macOS versions are 14, 15, and 26, but they are incompatible with Sony SL-M external SSDs.
Good
- Recovers supported photo, video, and document files
- Supports several Sony memory media types
- Runs on Windows and macOS
- Free software for supported Sony memory media
Watch out
- Recovery is not guaranteed
- Cannot recover physical card defects or damage
- Formatted media may not be recoverable
- Listed macOS versions do not support Sony SL-M SSDs
Who it suits
It may suit owners of supported Sony memory media who need to attempt recovery of accidentally deleted or damaged files. It is not suitable for repairing physical card damage or recovering game data and protected media.
Verdict
Memory Card File Rescue offers a free recovery attempt for supported Sony media and file types. Recovery has important limits, including no guarantee of success and no repair for physical card damage.
Plans and prices
From Memory Card File Rescue's own pricing page, checked 15 Oct 2026.
| Plan | Price | What it gives you |
|---|---|---|
| Memory Card File Rescue | Free | Requires eligible Sony memory-card model plus identification number or download code · recovery is not guaranteed · Free download for owners of supported Sony memory media |
The facts
Each one read from Memory Card File Rescue's own pages, with the date it was checked.
The company
- Company headquarters
- LinkedIn lists Sony Electronics headquarters in San Diego, United States, and Tokyo, Japan.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Company legal name
- Sony Electronics' LinkedIn profile identifies the business as a public company founded in 1946.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Company size
- LinkedIn places Sony Electronics in the 10,001-plus employee size category.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Parent company profile
- Sony Group's LinkedIn page describes Sony Group Corporation as a creative entertainment and technology company with more than 10,001 employees and headquarters in Tokyo.checked 15 Oct 2026
What it does
- Display requirement
- The stated minimum display is 800×600 with high color (16-bit) or better.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Document recovery
- Documents are listed as another recoverable file category.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Download gating
- The download form asks for the memory-card model and its identification number or download code.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Formatted media
- Files on a memory medium formatted on a computer or camera may not be recoverable.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Formatting limit
- Files on media formatted by a computer or camera may be unrecoverable.checked 15 Oct 2026
- License installation step
- The installation walkthrough includes accepting a license agreement, but it does not identify an open-source license.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Limit: failed video files
- The same Reddit discussion reports recovered files with plausible names and sizes that still would not open in VLC, Catalyst Browse or DaVinci Resolve when another tool was tried.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Limit: hard-drive uncertainty
- A Reddit user was unsure whether the utility could scan footage copied onto a hard drive because the product is presented as a memory-card tool.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Limit: protected media
- Softpedia notes that encrypted or password-protected movies and music, along with game data, cannot be restored.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Limit: recovery reliability
- Softpedia cautions that physically corrupted data may remain unrecoverable even when the tool is used on supported media.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Media limits
- Sony says operation is verified only with its currently marketed memory media and may not be supported on media from other manufacturers.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Other-brand media
- Sony verifies current Sony media and warns that operation with other manufacturers' cards or drives may not work.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Other files
- The software also supports recovery of documents, but not game data or content-protected music and movies.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Output location
- Recovered files are written to a computer rather than back to the source memory card.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Photo recovery
- The program targets JPEG, Sony ARW, Nikon NEF, Canon CR2/CR3 and MPO 3D photographs.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Physical damage
- The software cannot recover defects or damage to the memory card itself.checked 11 Oct 2026
Where it runs
- macOS availability
- The download page lists macOS installer version 3.4.2 and macOS 14, 15, and 26 as supported operating systems.checked 11 Oct 2026
- macOS installer
- The Mac package is MCFileRescue.dmg version 3.4.2 and is 26 MB.checked 15 Oct 2026
- macOS limitation
- The listed macOS versions are not compatible with Sony External SSD SL-M series.checked 11 Oct 2026
- macOS requirements
- The current page lists macOS 14, 15 and 26, with SL-M incompatibility and potentially slow Apple-silicon transfer using Sony MRW-G1/G2 readers.checked 15 Oct 2026
Alternatives to Memory Card File Rescue
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