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

girl using laptop hoping for good luck with her fingers crossed

Hate Windows 11's Start menu? Rumors suggest Microsoft is fixing pretty much everything that's wrong with it — and speeding up File Explorer too

By Darren Allan published

Rumored fixes for Windows 11's Start menu sound great, but some folks remain seriously skeptical.

A finger touching a screen showing the Windows 11 logo next to a laptop screen showing the France flag covered in digits

France has ditched Windows 11 for Linux on 2.5 million government PCs — here's why Microsoft should worry that millions more could follow by the end of 2026

By Darren Allan published

Is 2027 set to be the year of Linux? There are signs that this might actually be the case, for sure.

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SpaceX Starlink Satellites Waiting To Be Released Into Orbit With the Earth In The Background

A Starlink outage left dozens of unmanned US Navy vessels stranded off the California coast — and exposed the Pentagon's worrying reliance on Elon Musk

By Darren Allan published

'You accept those vulnerabilities because of the benefits you get from the ubiquity Starlink provides' — and it's the only realistic option right now.

Sad gamer

Samsung issues warning about fake SSDs in Europe — as the PC crisis sparks a massive slump in CPU sales

By Darren Allan published

More fake SSDs and a CPU sales slump — the casualties of the RAM crisis are piling up, sadly.

Mechanical computing platform showing interconnected springs and bolts

A computer without electricity? Mechanical computing concept 'could help improve people's lives' with all sorts of potential real-world uses

By Darren Allan published

Mechanical computing platforms could operate where it isn't possible to use silicon chips.

A masculine hand typing on a Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch

Microsoft's next-gen Surface devices don't sound exciting going by rumors — and I worry they'll be poor value even compared to MacBooks

By Darren Allan published

In an interesting twist, Arm-based Surface devices won't come until later this year, we're told — as Intel models will be released first.

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Representational image of a dynamic computer network.

AI could mean the end of the Wayback Machine, as news websites are increasingly blocking it to prevent content scraping

By Darren Allan published

This isn't the first time the Wayback Machine has faced what could be deemed an existential threat.

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

Windows 11 tool brings a macOS feature to the desktop — and I can't believe this useful trick isn't in Microsoft's OS already

By Darren Allan published

A Microsoft exec made a utility to bring this cool macOS feature to Windows 11.

A Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch on a desk

The RAM crisis strikes again — Samsung Galaxy phones and Microsoft Surface laptops just got a whole lot more expensive

By Darren Allan published

'Apple is now the value brand': More RAM misery as Microsoft hikes Surface prices in a big way.

CRT TV displaying white noise in the middle of a darkened field

I'll eat a hulking CRT monitor if this Analog TV Simulator app isn't the coolest thing you see today

By Darren Allan published

'No post-process filters — every artifact emerges naturally from the physics': Analog TV app delivers a mind-blowing simulation of CRT monitors.

A young woman is working on a laptop in a relaxed office space.

Microsoft is rolling out a 'turbo mode' for Windows 11 installation as part of the big drive to fix the OS

By Darren Allan published

Microsoft has introduced an option to make Windows 11 installation much faster — just be aware of the dangers of taking this shortcut.

Giant 'superdome' fan made of 15 separate 120mm case fans shown attached to side of gaming PC

'Building the Superdome, a 15-fan PC side panel': YouTuber makes giant fan that looks amazing — and drops temperature by 20C

By Darren Allan published

A YouTuber created a giant fan comprising of 15 individual 120mm case fans — and it somehow works really well.

Windows 11 Update showing on laptop in an office

Want to pause Windows 11 updates for as long as you want? Your wish could soon come true

By Darren Allan published

Microsoft recently promised users more control over updates for Windows 11, and it looks like it might soon deliver.

A RAM stick held between two fingers next to an illustration showing how the TurboQuant compression algorithm works

TurboQuant isn't the RAM crisis savior you're hoping for, analysts say — as memory prices continue to look bleak

By Darren Allan published

Where are we now with the RAM crisis? It's still bleak, despite some positive glimmers of late — and I wouldn't rely on TurboQuant to save the day.

RAM

After soaring 2,200%, DDR4 RAM prices finally fall — but don't get too excited

By Darren Allan published

We're seeing more positive signs that the RAM crisis is easing somewhat, but be careful not to raise your expectations too high.

Mature man using laptop in a cafe, looking annoyed

Microsoft has begun stripping out AI from Windows 11 — but it's already being criticized for not going far enough

By Darren Allan published

Notepad change shows a rebrand of AI tools, not a removal, and it has skeptics worried.

NorthridgeFix working on fixing a damaged RTX 5090 board

Nvidia RTX 5090 owner practices soldering skills on a $5,000 GPU — and the result is predictably disastrous

By Darren Allan published

Want to practice your soldering skills? Don't do it on a $5,000 graphics card (in case you were tempted).

Apple's 24-inch iMac M4 in Purple.

Bizarre bug in macOS is a 'ticking time bomb' that takes out networking capabilities if a Mac is left on for too long

By Darren Allan published

Thinking of leaving your Mac turned on for a couple of months? Beware of a weird macOS bug that'll take out your networking.

Apple MacBook Neo in Blush, looking at color-matched keyboard

Want a MacBook Neo? You'll now be waiting weeks for delivery — and rumors suggest this delay could get much worse

By Darren Allan published

The MacBook Neo's success has a downside — Apple is struggling to fulfill orders.

Sad gamer

More RAM price-hike misery? Framework warns of 'volatility and cost increases through the rest of 2026' just as some GPUs suddenly get more expensive

By Darren Allan published

Laptop maker Framework cautions against getting carried away with a 'temporary reprieve' in RAM and SSD price hikes.

A laptop on a desk with the Windows 11 background on its screen.

Microsoft is 'working hard on migrating all of Windows to modern UX', and jazzing up Windows 11's design — but can it make good on all its recent promises?

By Darren Allan published

A Microsoft exec is promising work on the design front to 'help Windows 11 feel more polished and coherent'.

Annoyed Windows 10 user

Did Microsoft not hear about the RAM crisis? Windows 11's new Copilot app is quite the memory hog

By Darren Allan published

Microsoft promised to hone Windows 11's RAM usage — but confusingly the new Copilot app is a memory hog.

Happy woman sitting on a bed with a coffee and a laptop

'Side effects may include curiosity': Google's $3 ChromeOS Flex kit aims to save your old Windows 10 laptop from the scrapheap

By Darren Allan published

Google's kit aims to breathe new life into old hardware, and that could be Macs as well as Windows 10 PCs.

A Dell XPS 14 and Dell XPS 16 sitting on display

'God-tier battery life': Dell XPS 14 lasts 43 hours in longevity test that shows the laptop leaves Apple's MacBook Air M5 in the dust

By Darren Allan published

Dell XPS 14 lasts 43 hours in battery life test that shows how LG's screen helps to extend longevity massively in some scenarios.

Asus ROG Zephyrus G16 2026 being used for content creation on a desk

Asus just revealed big ROG gaming laptop price hikes — and they're so painful some thought they were an April Fool

By Darren Allan published

Asus has announced pricing for ROG Zephyrus G16 gaming laptops — and they've been painfully hiked.

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