Start with one file
Choose the damaged MOV or MP4 first. The simple path should not demand technical choices upfront.
Free preview app
Download the Mac repair app.
Start with the broken video that will not open. Rescue My Video tries automatic repair first, creates a watermarked preview, and asks for a healthy sample only if the file genuinely needs one.
Free preview mode
No account required to test whether the app can rebuild your video.
Choose fileRepair previewUnlock export
Download link is being connected. Check back for the free preview build.
Use a sample only if asked
A short matching healthy clip can help, but it belongs in advanced repair, not the first screen.
Keep files local
The repair attempt, preview, and export happen on the Mac instead of through an upload queue.
1
What to try first
Download Rescue My Video, open the app, and choose the broken recording. A good first candidate is a file with real size that fails in QuickTime, shows 00:00, refuses to seek, crashes a player, or appears to have been interrupted before finalization. The app should never overwrite the original. It writes separate repair jobs so customers can test without risking their only copy.
Automatic repair is the default because most non-technical users should not have to understand reference files, codec headers, or muxing. If the automatic pass can build a preview, the customer can immediately judge the result. If the app needs more structure, it can explain the healthy sample requirement in simple language.
2
How to judge the preview
A repaired preview should be checked like a real video, not just opened for one second. Play the start, scrub through the middle, check the end, listen for audio drift, and look for repeated or jittery sections. Some damaged recordings recover cleanly. Others recover with gaps or rough timing where the original recording failed. Preview helps customers understand the difference before they buy.
Once the preview is worth saving, the customer can buy the $20 lifetime unlock and export the clean version. That simple sequence is the product promise: try locally, prove recovery, then pay once.
3
When to use advanced mode
Advanced mode is for the files that need more context. A healthy sample can help when the damaged recording lost codec settings, timescale information, track layout, rotation, or other container details. The sample should be short, working, and recorded with the same device or app settings as the broken file. It does not need the same people, background, journey, meeting, or event. It only needs to describe how that device normally writes video.
This is why the app should not force sample upload first. Many customers can get a preview from the damaged file alone. Asking for a reference clip too early makes repair feel technical before it has to. The better experience is progressive: try automatic repair, explain the result, and then reveal sample-assisted repair if it is the next sensible step.
4
What the app is not for
Rescue My Video is not a deleted-file recovery suite and it is not a magic replacement for footage that no longer exists. If a cloud placeholder replaced the local file, if a disk was wiped, if a card reused the same blocks, or if the camera never recorded the missing section, a video repair app cannot recreate those images. The right job is to inspect damaged media files that still contain recoverable packets and rebuild a playable copy when enough data remains.
Setting that expectation helps customers trust the product. The free preview makes the boundary visible: either there is useful footage in the repaired copy, or there is not enough remaining data to justify payment. That honest flow is better for support, refunds, reviews, and long-term brand trust.
5
Before running a repair
Customers should keep the original broken file exactly as it is. Do not rename it repeatedly, trim it in a video editor, export it through another app, or save a player-generated copy over the top. The safest workflow is to leave the damaged recording untouched, choose it inside Rescue My Video, and let the app create separate job folders for previews and exports. That makes every attempt reversible and keeps the best evidence available for a sample assisted pass or future support.
It is also worth checking whether the file is truly local. Some desktop folders are synced with cloud storage and may show a placeholder instead of the full recording. A repair app needs the actual bytes of the damaged video, not a shortcut, partial download, or cloud-only item. If the file came from a memory card, copy it to the Mac first and avoid recording new footage to the same card until the important clip has been backed up.