Darren Allan

Darren is a freelancer writing news and features for TechRadar (and occasionally T3) across a broad range of computing topics including CPUs, GPUs, various other hardware, VPNs, antivirus and more. He has written about tech for the best part of three decades, and writes books in his spare time (his debut novel - 'I Know What You Did Last Supper' - was published by Hachette UK in 2013).

Articles by: Darren Allan

A woman sitting in a chair looking at a Windows 11 laptop

Windows 11 24H2 gets a more streamlined taskbar and some much-needed bug fixes in Microsoft’s latest update

By Darren Allan published

New update for Windows 11 24H2 adds polish to the taskbar, Start menu, File Explorer and more besides.

An annoyed looking woman sitting at a desk and using a laptop

Bing Wallpaper app arrives on Microsoft Store in Windows 11, and it’s free – but there could be hidden costs here

By Darren Allan published

If the online chatter about the app is correct, you should steer clear of Bing Wallpaper and use Windows Spotlight instead.

Windows 10 Logo on Laptop

Microsoft is again nagging Windows 10 users to buy a new machine – a Copilot+ PC to be precise, for the ‘ultimate Windows 11 experience’

By Darren Allan published

Windows 10 users are being hit with a full-screen nag telling them to ‘level up’ and upgrade to Windows 11 on a Copilot+ PC.

The Audio-Technica ATH-SQ1TW2 in green held in a hand, with a subway platform in the background

Audio-Technica warns of overheating issue with its new cheap wireless earbuds that ‘can produce smoke’

By Darren Allan published

If you have a model in one of the affected batches, don’t use your charging case, and contact Audio-Technica ASAP.

A pair of Intel Arc Alchemist chips in front of a dark purple background

Intel isn’t giving up on desktop graphics cards after Battlemage, as rumor claims 3rd-gen Celestial GPUs are still coming

By Darren Allan published

Celestial isn’t canceled, apparently – Intel will still be taking the fight to AMD and Nvidia with 3rd-gen Arc desktop GPUs.

Render of a new RTX 4000 Max-Q gaming laptop.

Nvidia RTX 4050 could be the ‘Terminator GPU’ of this laptop generation that refuses to die when the RTX 5050 arrives

By Darren Allan published

Nvidia rumored to be keeping RTX 4050 laptop GPU to sit under RTX 5050 when it arrives – so will this help with cheaper gaming laptops?

Lenovo IdeaPad Duet 5 Chromebook with touchscreen

Google might have a radical plan to beat Apple’s iPad – turn ChromeOS into Android and take over the tablet world

By Darren Allan published

Some new rumors suggest that Google is planning to transform ChromeOS into Android – which could be a big deal for the tablet world.

Upset young man plays computer games at home.

Windows 11 24H2 is plagued by more bugs, including weird installation failures and crashes hitting PC gamers

By Darren Allan published

Some Windows 11 24H2 users are reporting more troublesome glitches at the hands of the latest update for November.

An Intel Arc A750 graphics card on a pink desk mat next to its retain packaging

Intel’s next-gen Arc B580 spotted, backing up rumors of a December launch for Battlemage GPUs

By Darren Allan published

Leak about packaging for Battlemage B580 is a hopeful hint the budget GPU we desperately need could arrive soon.

Close up of the Pixelbook Go logo below the screen.

Google might resurrect Pixel laptop as a high-end Chromebook to take on MacBook Pro and Surface Laptop

By Darren Allan published

Rumor has it that Google is bringing back its laptop hardware, which would please a lot of the plentiful Pixelbook fans out there.

[EMBARGOED!!!!!!!!! JAN 8 1130AM EST] An array of Nvidia RTX 4080 Super GPUs on a black reflective surface

Nvidia rumored to be winding down production of RTX 4000 GPUs ahead of next-gen launches – which could mean some tempting Black Friday bargains

By Darren Allan published

Nvidia is said to be transitioning to RTX 5000 graphics cards, with Lovelace models being discontinued – save for the RTX 4060.

AMD Ryzen 5 7600X processor

AMD’s Ryzen chips appear to be wiping the floor with Intel – but the best-selling CPUs right now might surprise you

By Darren Allan published

AMD is routing Intel in the battle of the CPUs going by the bestsellers for major retailers – but Ryzen 9000 isn’t winning this war.

Microsoft Windows 10

Time is rapidly running out for Windows 10, as Microsoft shuts down Beta testing channel

By Darren Allan published

Windows 10 death knell sounds, as Microsoft shuts down Beta testing channel – so don’t expect any new features for the OS.

Dark mode for Gmail

Tired of signing up to services or websites only to be spammed? Gmail could get a ‘shielded email’ feature to save you from all that stress

By Darren Allan published

Shielded email could protect you from spam and security risks when you sign up to online services.

An angry office worker preparing to smash his laptop with a hammer.

Noticed Windows 11 getting more buggy? Microsoft implements a load of bug fixes with new preview build, fighting some truly odd glitches

By Darren Allan published

Windows 11 is becoming a fix-a-thon for Microsoft lately, with new preview build being almost entirely about resolving issues.

female PC gamer playing on a desktop

There’s now one less reason to visit the Microsoft Store – free Instant Games have been scrapped (though they didn’t help the platform much anyway)

By Darren Allan published

Instant Games – free arcade games you could play via the Microsoft Store without installing them – is now on the scrapheap.

Nvidia geforce 4070

Nvidia’s rumored CPU could pack integrated GPU to rival RTX 4070 mobile – should AMD and Intel start to worry now?

By Darren Allan published

Forget AMD’s powerhouse Strix Halo laptop CPU – Nvidia’s planned APU could outgun it apparently.

New Mac mini M4 in a studio

Apple Mac mini M4 gets thumbs-up from iFixit for repairability – but not without downsides around SSD upgrades

By Darren Allan published

Mac mini M4 is commendably repairable, but there are issues with some soldered ports, and notably with the proprietary SSD.

An AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D on a desk on top of its retail packaging

AMD Ryzen 9800X3D CPU has totally sold out – and a new worry is that fresh stock may not arrive until late December

By Darren Allan published

The situation around Ryzen 9800X3D stock appears to be very shaky, with scalpers again causing misery for genuine buyers.

Steam Deck OLED in limited edition white color

Steam Deck OLED white model arrives on November 18 – but it’s limited edition, and once sold out, will be gone forever

By Darren Allan published

You’ll have to be quick to grab the limited edition handheld, and you’ll also pay a premium too.

OpenAI

OpenAI’s next-gen Orion model is hitting a serious bottleneck, according to a new report – here’s why

By Darren Allan published

In certain areas, next-gen Orion is failing to impress compared to the existing GPT-4 model.da

An annoyed looking woman sitting at a desk and using a laptop

Microsoft stealthily installs Windows 10 update to nag you to upgrade to Windows 11 – and not for the first time

By Darren Allan published

If you’ve had enough of Microsoft’s nagging about your PC needing an upgrade, we’ve got some bad news…

Intel Core Ultra processor

Intel admits ‘self-inflicted wounds’ with Core Ultra 200S CPUs not performing as well as expected – but promises fixes are coming

By Darren Allan published

Intel is on the back foot, once again this year, but is promising fixes for gaming performance in particular.

Three Intel Arc A580 cards against a blue dotted background

Intel Battlemage rumored for December – could new budget GPUs win over gamers neglected by Nvidia and save the Arc brand?

By Darren Allan published

Rumor hints that we could get the new budget GPUs PC gamers are crying out for.

An Nvidia RTX 4090

Nvidia RTX 5090 Ti suddenly pops up – and RTX 6000 GPUs are mentioned in trademark filings too – but don’t get excited

By Darren Allan published

Ready for Nvidia RTX 5000 graphics cards? New trademark filing is another hint that next-gen GPUs are about to arrive.

Other versions of this page are available with specific content for the following regions: