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These budget DVD writers bring disc support back to modern laptops, and both are available at great prices right now.

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(Image credit: Smith Collection/Gado)

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If you’re a large business or enterprise-grade business looking for the best data recovery software, Ontrack EasyRecovery can be a good choice. With more than 40 years of experience, the platform claims a million customers with 120 petabytes of recovered data.

However, instead of taking the provider’s word for it, we’ve put Ontrack EasyRecovery through tests of our own to see if it lives up to its reputation. Read on as we discuss Ontrack EasyRecovery in detail, including its best features, pricing, installation, and in-use experience.

Ontrack EasyRecovery: Plans and pricing

Ontrack EasyRecovery does not offer a unified pricing page where you can view the prices of the different products at a glance. You’ll have to manually click on the “Buy Now” button on various product pages to actually see how much the products cost, which can be a bit of a buzzkill.

That said, we found the pricing pretty competitive and at par with other data recovery software around. For example, its Home version costs $59.99 for a year for Windows and $69.99 for Mac. Similarly, the Professional version costs $99.99, while the Premium plan comes at $129.99. The Technician version costs $199 and covers 3 devices, and lastly, the Toolkit costs $299 for up to three machines.

(Image credit: Ontrack EasyRecovery)

Although Ontrack EasyRecovery offers a free plan, it is one of the most limited versions we have seen across the board. You can recover up to 1GB of data, but with an upper cap of 25MB per file. This makes it impossible to recover any file more than 25MB using the free version.

Ontrack EasyRecovery: Features

On the face of it, Ontrack EasyRecovery may not appear as feature-rich as some competing data recovery tools. However, it stands out as one of the few platforms designed to meet the needs of enterprise-grade users as well as government organizations. This level of adoption speaks volumes about its reliability and advanced recovery capabilities.

(Image credit: Future)

EasyRecovery is available for both Windows and Mac and supports FAT, NTFS, or exFAT file systems, as well as HFS, HFS+, and APFS formatted drives. The best part about it is that you can save the results of your scan and resume the recovery process later.

The provider offers various products catering to a wide range of users – from home users trying to recover deleted, trashed, or virus-infected files to professional users recovering multiple data loss events. EasyRecovery can create disk images, which lets you work on a copy of the drive instead of risking further damage to the original.

Additionally, you can also monitor hard drive health and recover data from CDs and DVDs. There’s also a Premium version, which can repair corrupt photos and videos and clone HDDs and SSDs, enabling seamless migration or backup of entire drives.

Moving up, the Enterprise version is an on-premise technician plan, which can rebuild broken RAIDs and volumes and create virtual RAIDs. This comes in handy in complex scenarios where RAID configurations are broken or disks are missing.

Lastly, there's the Technician version, which offers licenses for commercial use and works on Windows, Mac, and Linux (only this version) devices.

Scanning

The provider offers two scanning modes: full scan and deep scan. However, the actual scanning process is pretty slow. It took me more than half an hour to scan a 500 GB external hard disk with a quick scan. A deep scan can take 4 to 5 hours, depending on the scan location and complexity of file types.

(Image credit: Future)

On average, data recovery software consumes around 8 to 15% of CPU processing power while actively scanning for lost files. However, on my Windows 11 system, EasyRecovery averaged just 3 to 4% CPU usage during the scan.

(Image credit: Future)

While this is impressively low for a typically resource-intensive process, it also raises some concerns about performance. In practice, the lighter CPU footprint appeared to come at the cost of scan depth and overall effectiveness, since the scans were not able to detect certain deleted files from the drive.

Ontrack EasyRecovery: Installation and in-use experience

The interface is modern and quickly navigable. It is easy to go over, and you can find your way to the first scan within a couple of minutes without any hassle. There’s also a handy preview mode, which you can turn on to preview the files being scanned.

However, it appeared more of a cosmetic feature during our tests, since you cannot actually click or recover anything until the scan has finally been completed.

(Image credit: Future)

The left panel shows you the files being scanned in a tree view and file type view, along with the deleted list. However, none of these lists will populate until the scan completes. Comparatively, tools like Wondershare Recoverit and EaseUS let you recover files while the scan is running in the background.

(Image credit: Future)

That said, EasyRecovery offers a handy preview feature where you can preview the files before recovering them. However, it may not work if the files were deleted a long time ago or have been corrupted beyond repair.

Ontrack EasyRecovery: How we tested

We sourced Mozart's album from the Internet Archive, which contains 101 MB of data and 22 files, including 13 JPGs, 4 PNGs, 2 MP3s, and 2 FLAC files, to test data recovery capabilities across various formats. However, since EasyRecovery caps the per-file recovery limit at just 25 MB, we adopted a different approach to test it out.

We scanned our external 1.3 TB NTFS hard drive after copying and deleting certain PDF files and images on it, each within the prescribed limit. After the initial scan was done, we clicked on the file and hit recover. Within a minute, the files appeared in our destination folder with their contents intact.

Ontrack EasyRecovery: Support

Upon visiting the Ontrack website, we couldn’t find a traditional “Support” section. However, the “Contact Us” page is fairly comprehensive, offering multiple options including general inquiries, technical support, job status tracking, and even emergency services. Users can get in touch with Ontrack specialists directly via the contact form or by calling them.

There’s also a dedicated option to track ongoing recovery jobs through a client portal, along with 24/7 emergency services for time-sensitive situations. While the platform does cover some general FAQs on its site, there isn’t much detailed guidance on performing specific recovery tasks. That said, the availability of direct human support and round-the-clock assistance helps bridge that gap for most users.

(Image credit: Ontrack EasyRecovery)Ontrack EasyRecovery: The competition

Arcserve UDP and MiniTool Data Recovery are two popular alternatives to Ontrack EasyRecovery. Both come with comprehensive file recovery options for events such as accidental deletion, virus attack, and disk failure. Arcserve is more geared toward business clients, and it is great at data recovery in environments that use large volumes of data. It is also very effective at minimizing data loss when it comes to cloud applications.

MiniTool is designed more for at-home or small-business use than it is for corporate settings, and the highest tier plan is, in fact, called Personal Ultimate, with a pricing scheme that changes with the duration of your license and not with any additional features or functionality.

Of the three, Arcserve is the best option for enterprise-grade data recovery, while MiniTool can only be used in private or home settings and EasyRecovery provides a great middle-ground for individuals and small or medium-sized businesses.

Ontrack EasyRecovery: Final verdict

Despite its slow scanning process, Ontrack EasyRecovery is very good at its core function, which is finding and recovering lost files. It is one of the few platforms that offers enterprise-grade software for large organizations as well as governments. It can recover data from PCs, RAID volumes, HDDs, SSDs, and even supports Linux systems on higher-tier plans. It is beginner-friendly and easy to navigate with a handy preview feature.

However, its free plan is very limited, as it allows recovering files up to a maximum size of 25MB only, which makes it practically unusable for serious data recovery testing. Overall, if you’re looking for a dependable, no-frills recovery tool backed by strong industry credibility, EasyRecovery is a solid choice.

We've listed the best data recovery service.

When it comes to gaming mice, I think the Razer DeathAdder is still one of the best cheap options out there, and it's now a bargain for under £20 at Amazon.

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DM Disk Editor and Data Recovery Software (DMDE) is a popular name among data recovery loyalists. It’s not as flashy as some other modern tools, but those in the data recovery domain often swear by DMDE’s reliable recovery features.

In this article, we’ve put DMDE to the test to see if all the community chatter about this oldish-looking data recovery software is worth it. Read on till the end as we discuss DMDE’s performance, interface, pricing, and our final verdict based on in-house tests.

DMDE: Plans & pricing

(Image credit: DMDE)

DMDE has one of the most generous free plans we have seen across the board. Its free version allows you to recover up to 4,000 files from a selected directory per request, without any limit on the number of requests you can make.

This means you can potentially use DMDE for free forever if you have the time to recover each directory individually, with a hard upper cap of 4,000 files per directory. However, this usually involves a lot of time and organizational headaches, which is why you should consider one of its extremely affordable paid plans.

You can get started with its Express plan, which costs $9.95 per month or $20 per year. This is ideal for individual users who want to recover a few files every now and then. Alternatively, you can opt for the Standard plan, which costs $48 for a perpetual license. This is recommended for regular home users and small businesses with personal recovery needs.

Lastly, there’s the Professional plan, which costs $95 for a single OS family and $133 for multi-OS. This plan is designed for medium and large enterprises, with several professional features such as read support for E01 disk image files, log support to resume disk copying, DMA mode support in DOS, and I/O handler script customization.

DMDE: Key features

DMDE supports a wide range of operating systems, including Windows, macOS, Linux, and even DOS, along with a host of file systems such as FAT12, FAT16, FAT32, exFAT, NTFS, HFS+, HFSX, Ext2, Ext3, Ext4, and so on. And if that’s not enough, you can provide DMDE with a custom file type, and the platform can recognize signature patterns to find and recover similar files from your desired location.

Besides this, DMDE is very good at detecting and restoring lost partitions, even after a complete partition wipeout. It can recover boot sectors and partition headers and works with both legacy and modern partition styles, which is very useful if you are trying to restore old systems.

However, it’s DMDE’s RAID reconstructor that sets it apart from other recovery software on the market. Its RAID module allows you to build a virtual RAID from either individual disks or disk images, while supporting RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 4, RAID 5, RAID 6, delayed parity, custom striping, JBOD/spanned disks, along with automatic detection of RAID configurations.

(Image credit: Future)

This lets you recover data even when the original RAID is broken or inaccessible, without needing to rebuild it physically. Since everything is done virtually, your source disks remain safe throughout the process.

Scanning

I was impressed by the number of scanning options DMDE offers. For starters, there are quick and deep scan options that you can choose based on your recovery needs. Besides this, before each scan begins, you can preset various parameters. For example, you can choose which area of the disk to scan or whether you want to scan raw file signatures.

(Image credit: Future)

DMDE’s quick scan is much faster than some other recovery software. However, given its lackluster interface, you won’t see a prominent scanning status bar – only a small battery-style bar. That said, if the scan takes longer than expected, you can save the scans to load later. You also have the option to view the files being scanned by clicking the ‘Open Volume’ option at the bottom.

Once you see the deleted file you want to recover, select the small checkbox on the left and click ‘Recover’. You’ll again see some advanced selection options, where you’ll need to choose the recovery destination and filter out results based on file size, last modified date, and IDs.

(Image credit: Future)

Once you hit ‘Recover’, the files will appear in your chosen destination within a matter of minutes. However, do note that in the free edition, files can be processed from the active panel only. So, you’ll need to open a subdirectory in the active panel before you can recover any files.

DMDE: Installation and in-use

Installing DMDE is a piece of cake – a simple click of the free download button on its website will install the application on your system. Follow the prompts to complete installation, and it will automatically launch on completion.

(Image credit: Future)

Unlike most data recovery software, which welcomes you with a homepage or dashboard, DMDE is pretty vanilla. All you’ll see is a disk selection window, where you’ll need to select the disk you want to scan or choose other features you want to access.

Now, the first thing that struck me was how old the interface looked. DMDE seems to be stuck in the ’90s, and using it feels like you’re cranking up an old motorcycle on a new highway. Needless to say, there’s a steep learning curve involved. You’ll have to fiddle with tiny menu options to find what you’re looking for.

Thankfully, there are ample resources on its website that guide you through the process. Even then, it can take you a few days to get the hang of this oldish-looking software.

DMDE: How we tested 

I installed the free version of DMDE on my Windows 11 system, with 16GB of RAM and a 12th Gen Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-12500H processor. To test DMDE’s versatility, I downloaded Mozart's album from the Internet Archive, which consisted of 22 files – 13 JPG files, 4 PNG files, 2 MP3 files, 2 FLAC files, and 1 torrent file.

I copied this folder onto a 1.36 TB NTFS hard drive and connected it to my Windows 11 system. I then deleted this folder and emptied the Recycle Bin. After this, I ran a quick scan with DMDE. I clicked ‘Open Volume’ while the scan was still running and found the said Mozart folder. I opened the folder to select the files I wanted to recover and clicked ‘Recover’, and within a minute, the files appeared in my chosen destination in perfect condition.

DMDE: Support

(Image credit: DMDE)

Additionally, there’s a FAQ section that covers common issues and usage questions. While it’s not as detailed as we would like, it still gets the job done for most basic queries.

(Image credit: DMDE)DMDE: Final verdict

DMDE is one of the most value-for-money data recovery software solutions we have tested. At an annual cost of $20, you get advanced scanning features that support all common and even customizable file formats across systems like Windows, macOS, Linux, and DOS.

Not only can you recover lost partitions, but DMDE’s RAID reconstructor also allows you to build a virtual RAID while automatically detecting RAID configurations. Its quick scan is fairly fast and allows you to recover files while the scan is still in progress. You also have the option to save scans and resume them at a later date.

The only downside to DMDE is its outdated interface and steep learning curve. You’ll have to find your way around the menus and hidden settings. However, once you get past that, DMDE is a reliable recovery tool that rewards patience with powerful results.

The LG C5 was one of 2025's top TVs and after comparing it with this year's LG C6, the latter is a worthy successor.

Samsung Galaxy A57 two-minute review

According to sales figures, Samsung's budget-friendly A-series phones generally sell better than their pricier S-series siblings (aka the best Samsung phones). So, while the Galaxy S26 Ultra is the brand's newest flashy flagship, a good deal more buyers are probably considering the Samsung Galaxy A57 instead.

For those not versed in the Samsung taxonomy, here's a quick recap: 'A' = cheap, '5' denotes the place in the lineup (it goes 0-5), and '7' is the generation (this is the 2026 model). That's all to say that the Galaxy A57 is the brand's most advanced mid-ranger of 2026, succeeding the Galaxy A56.

Like the S26 family, this is an iterative upgrade, bringing spec tweaks and a new (but familiar) roster of colors, rather than any truly significant changes. Mind you, a price hike makes those same specs look a little bit less appealing this year, given that you're paying extra for them.

The largely unchanged specs list means you're getting similar highs and lows to last year's model. The A57's display is one standout feature, with the bright, bold screen a blessing for your Prime Video binge or commute-based gaming sessions.

Samsung's software is another treat; One UI largely avoids the problems that befall OS packages on many other mid-range phones, and there's much less feature-bloat here than you'll find on the Galaxy S-series phones.

The perks return, but so do the pitfalls. The A57's Exynos processor is simply no good for gaming, and I'd recommend doing your photo editing on a computer, too. For that matter, pictures taken on the A57 aren't up to snuff, which is a surprise given Samsung's usual pedigree in the field.

If you want a phone that just works, without drowning you in AI or automation features, you'll like the Galaxy A57. It won't suit avid photographers, gamers, or people who want a bit more out of their mobile, but it's a reliable workhorse for the average buyer. Its battery life is also solid, and the slightly shrunk frame will fit in your hands a little better than most large-screen phones.

Galaxy A-series phones are understandably popular, but with the price hike, this latest model is a tad harder to recommend than normal. It's definitely worth picking up if you find a solid discount, but with competitors from Nothing, Google, and various Chinese brands offering more for less right now, Samsung's top-end mid-range phone feels a little less valuable than it should.

Samsung Galaxy A57 review: price and availability

(Image credit: Future)

• Released on April 10, 2026
• Starts at $549 / £529 / AU$749, but for different variants
• Price hike over Galaxy A56

The Samsung Galaxy A57 was announced on March 25, 2026, alongside the more affordable A37. It went on sale several weeks later, on April 10.

There are three variants of the phone, with availability changing by region. The only model everyone gets costs $609 / £529 / AU$849, and that’s for 8GB RAM and 256GB storage. A cheaper model with only 128GB storage is available in the US and Australia, for $549 / AU$749, while Brits get a super-charged 12GB RAM and 512GB storage model for £699. I tested the 8GB / 256GB model for this review.

For ease of viewing, here are those prices in table form:

Samsung Galaxy A57 pricing

US

UK

AU

8GB / 128GB

$549

N/A

AU$749

8GB / 256GB

$609

£529

AU$849

12GB / 512GB

N/A

£699

N/A

No matter where you live, one thing’s for certain: the A57 has seen a significant price hike versus the Galaxy A56. That model started at $499 / £499 / AU$699 — again for different variants, which the table below details — meaning buyers of the new phone will have to shell out much more than they would have for last year’s model.

Given that the A56 wasn't particularly competitive in terms of price, either, an even higher price tag for the A57 will understandably give buyers pause.

Samsung Galaxy A56 pricing

US

UK

AU

8GB / 128GB

$499

N/A

AU$699

8GB / 256GB

$549

£499

AU$799

Samsung Galaxy A57 review: specsSamsung Galaxy A57 specs

Dimensions:

161.5 x 76.8 x 6.9 mm

Weight:

179g

Screen:

6.7-inch FHD (1080 x 2340) 120Hz AMOLED

Chipset:

Exynos 1680

RAM:

8/12GB

Storage:

128/256/512GB

OS:

Android 16, OneUI 8.5

Primary camera:

50MP, f/1.8

Ultra-wide camera:

12MP, f/2.2

Macro camera

5MP, f/2.4

Front camera:

12MP, f/2.2

Audio:

Stereo speakers

Battery:

5,000mAh

Charging:

45W wired

Colors:

Awesome Navy, Awesome Gray, Awesome Icyblue, Awesome Lilac

Samsung Galaxy A57 review: design

(Image credit: Future)

• Thin and light phone
• Some neat design touches that improve comfort
• Four color options, all sadly lifeless

To some degree, the Samsung Galaxy A57 has inherited a trait from the ill-fated Galaxy S25 Edge: thinness. The phone’s training regimen has seen it shrink to 6.9mm thick, which is thinner than anything else in Samsung’s roster beyond the Edge.

This doesn’t result in a massive overhaul of the Galaxy A’s hand-feel, not with the height and width still stretching the hand, but it’s a nice touch that makes the device look a little more svelte.

There’s clearly also been some weight loss, with the Galaxy A57 tipping the scales to 179g; again, this is a spec beaten only by Samsung’s year-old lean machine.

Samsung has toned down the fun of its A-series color options over the past few years, and it’s no different this time around. I tested the ‘Awesome’ Icyblue (scare quotes my own), and there’s also Awesome Navy, Awesome Lilac, and Awesome Gray (now that’s what I call an oxymoron). So that’s blue, blue, nearly-blue, and gray.

On the right edge of the A57, the power button is within easy thumb reach, and the volume rocker is only a small stretch higher. I appreciated that the phone’s edge slowly curves up just ahead of the power button, which meant it was simple to naturally find the button with my thumb without needing to look.

The A57 has a triple-camera rear module on the back, which looks identical to those of the last few A-series generations, and it doesn’t stick out too far, so the phone didn’t wobble much when I put it flat on a table.

The Galaxy A57 also has an IP68 certification, which means it’s safe against ingress from small particles, and can survive submersion in water of up to 1.5m for up to 30 minutes (that may sound specific, but it’s what the ‘8’ stands for). When a phone has IP68, you can rest assured that it’s safe for all everyday functions.

• Design score: 4 / 5

Samsung Galaxy A57 review: display

(Image credit: Future)

• 6.7 inches, 1080 x 2340 resolution
• 120Hz refresh rate, 1,900 nits max brightness
• Super AMOLED Plus gives display punch

The Samsung Galaxy A57 gets a 6.7-inch display, with a thin bezel that's broken up only by a small punch-hole for the front-facing camera.

Like the A56’s panel, it has a 1080 x 2340 resolution and hits a 120Hz refresh rate, so it’ll handle anything Netflix or your chosen mobile game can throw at it.

Colors are bright and vibrant, thanks in part to two upgrades over the previous model: a higher max brightness (1,900 nits) and the use of a Super AMOLED Plus panel, which offers a wider color gamut. It’s been said before, and it’s truer than ever now: it’s hard to find a better screen on a mid-range phone than on a Galaxy A-series device.

The A57 also has what Samsung calls Vision Booster, a feature that turns brightness and vibrancy up to 11 when the device recognizes that you’re watching content outdoors (as in, grappling with the shiny, reflective sunlight on the display). I didn’t have an A56 to test it against, and it’s not a feature that you can manually toggle, but I never had a problem using the A57 while outdoors.

A fingerprint sensor embedded under the phone's display worked well in my experience, never failing to recognize my thumb.

• Display score: 4.5 / 5

Samsung Galaxy A57 review: software

(Image credit: Future)

• Android 16 with One UI 8.5
• Six years of OS updates
• Software is cleaner and simpler than rivals'

Out of the box, the Galaxy A57 runs Android 16, the latest version of Android at the time of its release, with Samsung pledging six major Android updates to the phone.

This isn’t stock Android but One UI 8.5, which the Samsung Galaxy S26 also runs on, except here you get a tuned-down version of that same software.

Some may miss the flagship phone’s various premium features (you don't get generative AI tools like Drawing Assist, for instance), but I actually preferred the Galaxy A57's interface: you don't get inundated with AI features, random reminders, and gimmicky tools that do little.

One feature you do get is an upgraded version of Circle to Search. If you press and hold the home button, you can circle anything on screen and Google search it. The selling point of this feature is that it gives you the ability to find the outfits of people you see online — a pretty niche use case, it must be said — but I found Circle to Search pretty useful for searching for actors I recognized, settings in videos that I wanted to locate, and sports teams that I didn't recognize by their uniforms.

A common feature of mid-range smartphones is bloatware, but the Galaxy A57 is pristine and clean out of the box. You get barely any unwanted pre-installed apps (I can overlook Netflix and Spotify, given how ubiquitous they are), and there are barely any Samsung apps pre-installed either.

I’m a fan of the look of One UI, and it offers loads of customization options. You can bend the wallpaper, color palette, and icons to your will, and add Samsung-made widgets and tools that change how you use the phone.

I like to set up Modes on Galaxy phones, which let me quickly change various settings at the tap of a button. For example, I can design a Game mode, which mutes notifications and boosts screen and performance power, or set up a Sleep mode, which automatically turns on my alarm and switches the display to an eye-friendly grayscale. To easily switch these Modes on and off, I can plonk a carousel on my home page. It's pretty impressive stuff.

• Software score: 4 / 5

Samsung Galaxy A57 review: cameras

(Image credit: Future)

• 50MP main, 12MP ultra-wide, and 5MP macro cameras
• Cameras lack some vibrancy and optimization
• A range of useful camera features

Samsung has been using the same camera setup on its A50-series for years now (the A53 was the last model with a different main sensor), and in 2026, it's starting to show show its age. It’s simply not competitive compared to other similar-priced phones.

The main camera is a 50MP f/1.8 unit, which is joined by a 12MP f/2.2 ultra-wide lens and a 5MP f/2.4 macro lens. Around the front, there's a 12MP f/2.2 selfie snapper.

In anything shy of blinding sunshine or studio lighting, the Galaxy A57 struggled to capture an adequate level of vibrancy or color detail — for instance, in the camera samples below, you’ll see foliage that looks desaturated and lacks dynamic range. An upgraded ISP (Image Signal Processing) chip was cited as an upgrade with this phone, but it's not made a significant improvement.

Get some strong sunlight, and some colors do seep through, but you can’t control how sunny it is outside, and besides, sunshine didn't always fix the problem. Other phones do well to edit photos to pull out the contrast and boost the saturation if needs be, and I was surprised by how light-touch (read: ineffectual) the Galaxy A57 could be.

For some praise, I'll point to the auxiliary lenses. I was impressed by how consistent the color was between lenses — I often find ultra-wides lack the color of their main siblings — and the lack of distortion on the wide lens. The macro was a little finicky at finding focus on close subjects, but it's definitely more useful than many others I've tested (though it doesn't come close to making up for the lack of a dedicated zoom camera).

Selfies on the Galaxy A57 were a little better, offering some contrast that will make social media pictures look postable, though, as you can see in the pictures below, Portrait mode struggled with fluffy strands of hair.

The A57 offers you a reasonable range of expected camera modes, including Night and Samsung's stalwart Food, and there's also the A-series-exclusive Fun mode, which basically offers you Snapchat filters on your camera app. Single Take isn't available by default, but you can enable it via the Camera Assistant app in the Samsung Store.

Video recording hits 60fps at 1080p or 30fps at 4K, with a slow-mo app that doesn't reveal its framerate.

Once you've taken a photo, you can use a few tools to brush it up in the Gallery app. There's no built-in chatbot to AI slopify your pictures like in the S26 series, and instead, you get Object Eraser and a remaster tool, which auto-applies edits. The latter's actually pretty good, and I found it reliable for adding some zest to the default pictures that otherwise lacked it.

• Camera score: 3.5 / 5

Samsung Galaxy A57 camera samplesThis morning picture, taken at sunrise, was captured using the 1x camera.FutureThis view was captured on the ultra-wide camera, to contrast the futher shots.FutureThis view was captured using the main camera, to compare its field of view.FutureThis shot was captured at 2x zoom, using the main lens with digital cropping.FutureThis macro shot shows details you can capture using the lens.FutureWith sufficient light, the A57 performed okay, although it still couldn't adequately capture the zingy colors of a toy like this.FutureAt close distances, the A57 could focus well when not in macro mode.FutureThis selfie was taken in standard mode, to contrast the Portrait mode shot next.FutureThis selfie was taken in Portrait mode, to contrast the standard pic previously.FutureEven in the glorious light of sunrise, the A57 struggled with dynamic range and color.FutureSamsung Galaxy A57 review: performance and audio

(Image credit: Future)

• Samsung's Exynos 1680 chip + 8GB RAM (for most)
• Fine for everyday use, not for gaming
• Bluetooth 6.0 for audio

Samsung’s Galaxy A-series phones have never won awards for their blazing-fast performance — plenty of Chinese mobiles at this price point can run rings around them — and the Galaxy A57 is no different.

The phone has an Exynos 1680 chipset, made by Samsung itself, paired with 8GB RAM in most versions.

Geekbench 6 multi-core benchmark tests returned scores in the 4,400s. That’s a step above the 3,900s we saw in the A56, but less than half of what the S26 Ultra returned, and a big step below similar-priced alternatives I’ve tested recently, like the 8,600-scoring Poco X8 Pro Max. Unfortunately, every 3DMark test I ran crashed, which wasn't necessarily the fault of the phone (sometimes, new devices just don’t like benchmarking software), but it did mean I wasn’t able to dig much further into the A57's numbered performance…

… until I started actually playing games.

The A57 could handle well-optimized games like Call of Duty: Mobile, but only on lower graphics settings. Try to match the display quality with some resolution or graphics effects, and the handset would suffer. It would also heat up a little during longer gaming sessions, which is not something you'll encounter with most Snapdragon-powered phones, for instance.

So, the Galaxy A57 is no performance wunderkind, even if you can play certain titles with compromises. But if you're not a gamer, you can ignore all that, as the phone has all the performance credentials necessary for non-intensive everyday tasks like scrolling and streaming. If I weren't an avid gamer, I'd probably deem the Galaxy A57 powerful enough for me.

Audio-wise, you’re looking at support for Bluetooth 6.0, with the built-in stereo speakers about as passable as on any other phone at this price point. And no, there’s no 3.5mm jack, so you’ll have to use the USB-C port for wired audio.

• Performance score: 3.5 / 5

Samsung Galaxy A57 review: battery life

(Image credit: Future)

• Average-sized 5,000mAh battery
• Single day of use per charge
• 45W charging powers the phone in roughly 90 mins

The Samsung Galaxy A57 has a 5,000mAh battery, which is the same size battery as you'll find in the A56, as well as the flagship Galaxy S26 Ultra.

A capacity like this is, in most phones, shorthand for ‘all-day battery life’. That’s no different with the Galaxy A57 — I could use the device as much as I wanted, without worrying that it’d run out of juice.

You won’t get two days of battery life, though — not unless you don’t use your phone very much. For average use, you’ll get about a day and a half all in.

The A57 powers at 45W, so it’s not particularly fast, and with a compatible charger, you’ll get from empty to full in about an hour and a half. When the handset’s plugged in, it’ll tell you how long it’ll take to power up at its current speed, which is a really useful quality of life feature that I appreciated.

• Battery score: 3.5 / 5

Samsung Galaxy A57 review: value

(Image credit: Future)

Samsung's Galaxy A-series phones are reliable and have some great traits, but they don't offer as impressive value for money as their competitors. Bear in mind that A57 isn't cheap; at its price, it's firmly in the 'mid-range' category.

Many rivals at a similar price point will offer you one or two incredible specs along with a few average ones, like a huge battery, incredibly fast charging, a top-end processor, or a telephoto zoom camera. If you wanted the A57's specs from another brand, you'd probably find them for much less money.

Samsung does nothing to sweeten the deal, and so it's hard to argue that the A57 offers particularly exciting value for money. But as reliability and longevity go, there aren't many 'safer' all-round options than this one.

• Value score: 3.5 / 5

Should you buy the Samsung Galaxy A57?Samsung Galaxy A57 scorecard

Attributes

Notes

Rating

Value

It's just not priced in a competitive way. Sorry, Samsung.

3.5 / 5

Design

It may come in some pretty ugly colors, but the thin and light phone belies some pretty neat design features.

4 / 5

Display

The A57 has a good-looking screen that works well outdoors.

4.5 / 5

Software

The interface is clean, with no unnecessary extra apps or tools, and you get plenty of software support.

4 / 5

Camera

I was surprised how dull pictures looked, though some modes offer a little bit of fun.

3 / 5

Performance

The Exynos 1680 chipset doesn't cut it for advanced gaming, but the phone's fine for everyday use.

3.5 / 5

Battery

The 5,000mAh battery and 45W charging are roughly average for a mid-priced phone.

3.5 / 5

Buy it if...

You need something lightweight
The A57 is one of the lightest and thinnest phones I've ever seen, and it'll be svelte even if you clad it in a case.

You watch a lot of videos
The phone's great-looking display is a treat for people who spend a lot of time looking at social media or streaming services.

You don't want to pay for annoying features that you'll ignore
Samsung has stripped out the S-series' AI guff to deliver a clean, easy-to-use interface.

Don't buy it if...

You need a great camera phone
There are some useful modes, but the optimization just isn't there for good-looking pictures.

You need lots of performance power
If you need a phone that'll blast through PUBG or CoD: Mobile with ease, this isn't the one for you.

Samsung Galaxy A57 review: Also consider

Interested in the Samsung Galaxy A57 but want to know what else is out there? Here are some other mid-range gems you may want to consider.

Google Pixel 10a
Like the Galaxy A-series, the Pixel A-series offers cut-priced versions of flagships. The Pixel 10a is small and comes in fun colors, with a price slightly below the A57.

Read our full Google Pixel 10a review

iPhone 17e
Apple's own flagship-alternative is much smaller and only has one camera, but it runs faster and is your most affordable ticket to iOS.

Read our full iPhone 17e review

Nothing Phone (4a) Pro
Nothing's mid-range powerhouse undercuts the Galaxy, yet offers you a telephoto camera, a bigger display, and much more processing power. You just have to get over its divisive design.

Read our full Nothing Phone (4a) Pro review

Samsung Galaxy A57

Google Pixel 10a

iPhone 17e

Nothing Phone (4a) Pro

Starting price (at launch):

$549.99 / £529 / AU$749

$499 / £499 / AU$849

$599 / £599 / AU$999

$499 / £499 (about AU$1,000)

Dimensions:

161.5 x 76.8 x 6.9 mm

154.7 x 73.3 x 8.9 mm

146.7 x 71.5 x 7.8 mm

163.7 x 76.6 x 8 mm

Weight:

179g

185g

169g

210g

OS (at launch):

One UI 8.5, Android 16

Android 16

iOS 26

Nothing OS 4.1, Android 16

Screen Size:

6.7-inch

6.3-inch

6.1-inch

6.83-inch

Resolution:

2340 x 1080

2424 x 1080

2532 x 1170

2800 x 1260

CPU:

Exynos 1680

Google Tensor G4

A19 Bionic

Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Gen 4

RAM:

8GB / 12GB

8GB

Not specified

8GB / 12GB

Storage (from):

128GB / 256GB / 512GB

128GB / 256GB

256GB / 512GB

128GB / 256GB

Battery:

5,000mAh

5,100mAh

4,005mAh

5,080mAh

Rear Cameras:

50MP main, 12MP ultra-wide, 5MP macro

48MP main, 13MP ultra-wide

48MP

50MP wide, 50MP periscope telephoto, 8MP ultra-wide

Front camera:

12MP

13MP

12MP

32MP

How I tested the Samsung Galaxy A57

(Image credit: Future)

• Review test period = 2 weeks
• Testing included = Everyday usage, including web browsing, social media, photography, video calling, gaming, streaming video, music playback
• Tools used = Geekbench 6, 3D Mark, native Android stats

I tested the Samsung Galaxy A57 for just over two weeks before writing this review, after receiving a test sample from Samsung.

In part, testing was done experientially: I used it as I would any other smartphone, which included taking it on holiday to take pictures, conducting video calls, and streaming music and movies. I also put it through a barrage of 'lab-style' tests like benchmarks on Geekbench and 3D Mark, as well as through battery tests.

I've been reviewing smartphones for TechRadar since early 2019, and in that time have tested all manner of mobiles, including past Samsung Galaxy devices and plenty of other mid-range and affordable Androids.

Read more about how we test

First reviewed April 2026

The Samsung Galaxy A57 has a thin body, clean software, and a good-looking screen, making it great as an everyday phone. But it struggles with performance and photography.

Looking for the best data recovery software? There are hundreds of applications on the market that claim to bring back your lost data, but not all of them might work for you. This is why we’ve put in the effort to find only the best data recovery platforms that actually work.

In this article, we’ll be reviewing Auslogics File Recovery. Available only for Windows, it can help you recover deleted files, even from reallocated disks, and search multiple drives simultaneously. So, is this the hard drive data recovery software you need? Our Auslogics File Recovery review will help you decide.

Auslogics File Recovery: Plans and pricing

(Image credit: Auslogics File Recovery)

Auslogics File Recovery is one of the most affordable data recovery software options on the market, costing just $18.87 per year for three PC licenses. This comes down to around $6 to recover your data on each PC.

However, my biggest complaint with Auslogics is that it has a very limited free plan, which only lets you recover lost applications. You cannot search for or restore images, videos, audio, or documents with the free plan.

In comparison, peers like EaseUS, Wondershare Recoverit, and Stellar Data Recovery allow limited recovery of various file types even on their free versions. But there's a 30-day money-back guarantee, so you can try the complete Auslogics package risk-free before committing.

Auslogics File Recovery: Features

Auslogics goes beyond the traditional functionalities of a data recovery software, offering several other add-ons for comprehensive system upkeep and recovery. For starters, the software supports all major file types, including NTFS, FAT16, FAT32, and exFAT, on devices such as hard drives, memory cards, and USB storage devices. That said, it cannot recover data from CDs or DVDs.

Even if you have lost a disk partition on your drive, Auslogics' partition recovery feature allows you to scan and restore files from reallocated disks. There's also a pretty useful disk image tool, which allows you to make an exact copy of your drive with all the information on it, including deleted information. This freezes the current state of your drive, allowing you to work safely without risking total disk failure.

Another useful feature is the Wipe Free Space utility, which permanently removes previously deleted files so that they cannot be recovered at a later stage. When you usually delete files on a system, they aren't completely erased. The system marks that space as available, while the actual data sits there until new data overwrites it.

(Image credit: Future)

Auslogics’ Wipe Free Space overwrites the free space with random data, thereby erasing traces of previously deleted files. This can come in handy when you've deleted sensitive information or while selling or donating your hard drive.

Scanning

Auslogics’ scanning is fairly quick. We “quick” scanned 400GB of data on our Windows 11 Intel Core i5 system, which it was able to complete within 7 to 10 minutes. Once the scan is done, you can sort results based on file type and date, and also view them in three modes – list, detailed, and preview.

(Image credit: Future)

However, you can only view the deleted files once the scan is complete. This means that even if you’re trying to recover a small application, you'll have to wait for the entire deep scan to finish, which can take up to two to three hours depending on your disk size.

That said, what I like the most about Auslogics is that it allows you to customize various search criteria before starting the scan for more accurate results.

(Image credit: Future)

For instance, if you remember exactly when the deleted files were last modified or accessed, you can specify that time and date range in the settings.

(Image credit: Future)

Similarly, you can also search by specific file names or choose to skip zero file size and temporary system files. There is also an option to perform a deep scan.

Auslogics File Recovery: Installation and in-use

Installing Auslogics is pretty simple. You will find the free download button on the homepage. Just click on that to start the download and install the file once it completes. The main interface is well designed, with a window divided into three panes. Although it isn’t as modern as EaseUS or Stellar, it is surely an upgrade over DMDE’s old-school interface.

(Image credit: Future)

On the left-hand side, you will see various tools that Auslogics offers, whereas at the center, there is an option to select which items you want to scan.

There is a very handy in-built reports utility that shows you system metrics such as CPU usage, disk and network speeds, and memory consumption at a glance. You can also hit the create system report button to create a pretty detailed report with information like operating system, installed programs, partitions, CPU and cache properties, power management functions, and a whole lot more.

(Image credit: Future)

Instead of digging through multiple Windows settings, you get all critical system insights in one place, saving time and simplifying diagnostics.

Auslogics File Recovery: How we tested

We have tested several data recovery software, and in doing so, we usually download Mozart's album from the Internet Archive, copy them onto an external hard disk, and then delete them to test out the software's capabilities. This album contains a mix of various file types: PNG, JPG, MP3, and torrent.

However, since Auslogics only allows recovering software, we followed a slightly different approach. We scanned our entire Windows 11 system to look for deleted applications. The scan ran for a good 7-10 minutes, after which it pulled up a list of lost software. We randomly clicked on an application and hit restore, which Auslogics was able to do successfully.

Auslogics File Recovery: Support

The company’s website has fairly detailed answers to commonly asked questions, so that’s a good place to start if you run into issues with the software.

(Image credit: Auslogics File Recovery)

You can also submit your queries directly through the “Contact Us” section, which allows you to raise tech support requests as well as media, business, or partnership-related inquiries. This provides a straightforward way to reach the team for more specific concerns that may not be covered in standard support resources. However, there's no live chat or phone option.

Auslogics File Recovery: Final verdict

Auslogics is one of the most affordable data recovery software options you can get, costing less than $10 per PC for an entire year. However, this doesn’t mean that the product compromises on features. You get utilities like partition recovery, which lets you restore files from unallocated spaces, and a disk imaging tool that helps you save failing hard drives by allowing you to create an exact copy.

The software supports various common file types, such as FAT16/32 and exFAT. There is also a handy built-in reports feature that lets you pull complete system information with just a click. The installation is straightforward, and the user experience has been designed with beginners in mind. That said, it is only available for Windows systems, and its free plan does not allow you to recover images, videos, documents, or audio files.

Wondershare is one of the big names when it comes to creative tools and PC utilities. So, it’s no wonder that its Wondershare Recoverit excels as one of the best data recovery software.

It has a superb interface, and behind that you’ll find a robust set of features that can recover photos and video – and, if you’re happy to pay for higher levels, you’ll benefit from video repair options and bootable recovery tools too. There's even support for recovering from NAS and Linux devices depending on the version you buy.

We've put the software to the test to see if it can recover data to the extent it claims. Read on till the end for the full review, along with pros, cons, interface, and user experience.

Wondershare Recoverit: Plans & pricing

(Image credit: Wondershare Recoverit)

Wondershare Recoverit plans start at $59.99 for its monthly subscription, with the annual plan costing $99.99 and the lifetime perpetual costing $129.99. Although this might sound steep for some users, each of these plans covers two PCs, which means you are effectively paying only half to recover data on a single PC.

This is a big advantage over platforms like EaseUS, which offer the same pricing structure but only for a single license. Plus, just like EaseUS, the only difference between these plans is the licensing duration – all other features stay uniform under each plan.

Overall, Recoverit is an affordable data recovery option, especially if you want to recover data from more than one device. You can also bag an extra 10% discount via a code that keeps flashing on the pricing page.

There’s also a free plan you can use to test out Recoverit’s capabilities. However, you can only recover 500MB of data with it, which is much less than what EaseUS (2GB) and Stellar Data Recovery (1GB) offer.

Wondershare Recoverit: Features

Recoverit is one of the few data recovery tools that supports Linux, besides Windows, Mac, and NAS devices. You can recover more than 1,000+ file formats, including photos, videos, and documents, from SD cards, external drives, crashed computers, HDDs, SSDs, GoPro devices, cameras, the Recycle Bin, and much more.

I found Wondershare Recoverit pretty good at recovering fragmented media on my disk. Unlike other tools that rely on signature-based recovery, Recoverit uses advanced machine learning algorithms for pattern-based reconstruction, which allows it to reconstruct missing pixels, corrupted headers, and broken frames.

Besides this, Recoverit has a dedicated video repair engine where you can upload a sample video from the same device, allowing the software to learn its encoding structure and rebuild the corrupted video based on that pattern.

While the provider claims it uses AI for its reconstruction process, saying so would be an overstatement. That said, Recoverit is more advanced with its repair-driven recovery approach, which integrates a multi-stage repair mechanism, but calling it AI-based is not the right approach.

Scanning

One thing that impressed me was Recoverit’s fast scanning speeds. You simply need to select a drive location and hit the scan button to start the process. Much like EaseUS, Recoverit also initially runs a quick scan followed by a deep scan, but at a much faster pace. I was able to scan 640GB of data within 2 hours, whereas Stellar took more than 5 hours for the same.

(Image credit: Future)

The best part is that you can view deleted files while the scan is still ongoing, allowing you to recover them as well. This is better than Stellar Data Recovery, where you have to wait for the entire scanning process to complete before you can recover anything.

Recoverit was also very light on CPU resources, consuming just 6% to 8% of processing power on average, which is very low for a data processing application.

Wondershare Recoverit: Installation and in-use experience

Much like other data recovery software we have tested, Recoverit is also pretty easy to install. You’ll find the free download button on its website, and with just a single click, the installation process is underway.

(Image credit: Future)

However, in my testing, Recoverit takes slightly longer to install compared to EaseUS and Stellar. That said, the in-use and navigation experience is better than both applications.

The interface is pretty sleek and modern, with a dark theme. You'll see all your scannable devices in the central pane. All you have to do is select a drive location to start the scan. I noticed that scanning internal drives was much quicker than external hard disks.

(Image credit: Future)

A handy feature that Recoverit offers is AI-based file detection, where you will see a small banner during the scan in which its engine helps pick certain files for you to recover. While this is a feature different from competitors, I did not find it adding much utility to the process.

Once you select the file and click on recover, you'll need to choose the recovery location, and your files will be recovered almost instantly. However, one complaint is that Recoverit tries to push users towards its paid subscriptions after each scan, which can be pretty irritating after a point.

The biggest drawback, however, is that you must complete the recovery immediately after the scan is done. If you head back to the home page, your current scan results are lost, and you'll have to start from scratch. It would have been better if the free plan offered a feature to save scans for later use.

Wondershare Recoverit: How we tested

To evaluate performance, I began by installing the free version of Wondershare Recoverit on a Windows 11 machine equipped with 16GB RAM and a 12th Gen Intel Core i5-12500H processor.

For the recovery test, I sourced a Mozart album from the Internet Archive, containing 22 files across multiple formats: 13 JPGs, 4 PNGs, 2 MP3s, 2 FLAC files, and a torrent file. This dataset was transferred to a 1.36 TB NTFS hard drive connected to the system.

After confirming the files were accessible, I permanently deleted the folder and cleared the Recycle Bin to simulate a real-world data loss scenario. I then initiated a scan using Wondershare Recoverit.

With a quick scanning process, Recoverit successfully identified and recovered the entire dataset without any missing files, demonstrating reliable recovery performance under controlled conditions.

Wondershare Recoverit: Photo recovery

As you've seen, the user can easily see images and other files that Recoverit has found during the scanning process. You're also able to instantly start restoration just by clicking in a damaged file – perfect if you can already spot the photos you need. Results are filterable with a broader range of variables than on most other apps, so it’s easier to find your lost images, and you’ll get warned if your disk or drive has any issues.

It’s very easy to use, and Wondershare’s app delivers thorough, in-depth scanning results. This is no surprise when you consider that Wondershare uses 35 data recovery patents to get the job done.

We’ve only got minor issues with scans using this app: In our latest review we were only performing quick scans in a small virtual drive, so results were displayed in seconds. Still, in previous reviews we found scans of larger drives are not particularly fast, especially if you deploy a deep scan.

Photo previews aren’t very well-supported. That’s irritating if you want to look at files before committing to restoration. This is also crucial if you're simply installing Wondershare Recoverit to check if it can detect your missing files before paying for a subscription. As we mentioned, the free version of the app also refused to restore any files for us, even those well below the promised 100 MB quota.

Still, there are many impressive aspects to Recoverit beyond the interface. It’s been verified to work with more than 2,000 different devices, including PC and Mac drives and SSDs, USB memory sticks, SD cards, cameras and external hard drives – it’ll hunt down photos on virtually anything. It also supports more than 1,000 different file formats, which is extensive. Photographers will be pleased to see RAW, PSD and CRW files among all of the key mainstream formats.

This app works with formatted drives, raw disks, partitions, and drives with invalid partition tables or excessive fragmentation. It works on Windows and Mac, too. Support is also excellent: it’s available 24 hours per day, and it’s free.

There are loads of extra features available, although some are only included at higher payment tiers. You’re able to create bootable disks and USB drives to recover photography from crashed PCs, and there’s also video repair, scanning and fragment merging on offer. Sadly, those video repair options don’t extend to photographs.

If you do want video repair, you can select "Enhanced Recovery" from within the Utility. This will only work for drives though : you can't choose specific folders. The utility also only supports the more common video formats like MP4, MOV and AVI. There's a feedback option if you want to request more obscure formats like Theora (OGV).

If the files you've recovered are corrupted, you can also try to repair them with Wondershare's Repairit. This is available as a desktop app, online and via e-mail as a service.

Wondershare Recoverit: Final verdict

Wondershare Recoverit is an affordable data recovery platform that uses advanced machine learning algorithms to find and recover lost data files. It supports more than 1,000+ file formats across various devices, including cameras, external hard drives, and USB sticks.

We found it to be one of the best platforms to recover and reconstruct lost media files, thanks to its pattern-based, repair-driven recovery approach. While most data recovery platforms offer a single license at an average of $65 to $80, the Recoverit license for two PCs starts at $59.99.

The interface is just right for beginners, and the installation process is seamless. However, the free plan only allows 500 MB of data recovery, which isn't sufficient for most users. In our testing with the free tier, we also didn't find an option to save scans, which means you'll have to re-scan the drive if you want to recover files multiple times.

We've tested the best free file recovery software.