Articles by Darren Allan

The Valve Steam Machine, pictured on a dark marble worktop.

Steam Machine's official repair guides reveal the true trickiness of some upgrades — the RAM especially is causing some raised eyebrows

By Darren Allan Published 18 September 26

Steam Machine's official iFixit repair guides look great — but I'm worried about the difficulty of some upgrades or replacements.

Microsoft's AI chief fires shots at Anthropic, warning that treating AI as if it's conscious could be a huge mistake

By Darren Allan Published 17 September 26

Microsoft exec argues that we're 'seeding a new silicon species' that could 'compete with us for resources' — and something needs to be done.

An AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT made by Sapphire on a table with its retail packaging

AMD could be working on an Nvidia DLSS 5 rival, but it'll be for next-gen RDNA 5 GPUs — and I've a feeling that may be too late

By Darren Allan Published 16 September 26

The reaction to DLSS 5 is changing already, and no doubt AMD is watching keenly, whether or not this rumor is true.

Sad looking person holding head in hands sat at a gaming PC

DDR5 RAM pricing appears to be spiralling out of control even more — it's 5.5x pricier than before the memory crisis, and 2027 could get worse

By Darren Allan Published 16 September 26

Think RAM costs way too much already? You're right — but a fresh report shows that DDR5 is getting a lot pricier somehow.

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Nvidia RTX 5090 GPU prices skyrocket to $9,000 — as fresh RTX 6000 rumor suggests a 2027 launch that fills me with dread

By Darren Allan Published 16 September 26

The RTX 5090 keeps getting pricier somehow, so who knows how much the next-gen flagship will cost.

Valve says RAM crisis hasn't really changed its Steam Deck 2 plans, but hints that it could affect launch timing — and I'm all for a long delay if it's necessary

By Darren Allan Published 15 September 26

Valve says that handheld will happen "when we can deliver" — hinting that pricing will be key.

angry businesswoman working with a laptop at office

The latest Windows 11 update breaks audio on some PCs and reportedly kills File History feature

By Darren Allan Published 14 September 26

Windows 11 has another nasty bug, and Windows 10 users are saying they're glad they haven't upgraded.

'The memory chip market is heading toward a severe shortage': analyst firm believes RAM crisis could get far worse in 2027 — and you can blame AI ramping up

By Darren Allan Published 10 September 26

Could the RAM crisis get any gloomier? Yes, it just did, with the latest chatter from analysts turning even more pessimistic.

Windows 11's September update has arrived — here are the 3 key features that make this a must-install upgrade

By Darren Allan Published 9 September 26

After half a decade, a new Windows 11 update finally lets you move the taskbar — but it's the Start menu change that's more important to me.

Windows 11 desktop becomes a full-page Harry Potter ad — and Bing Wallpaper users rebel by uninstalling the app in droves

By Darren Allan Published 8 September 26

'I have uninstalled Bing Wallpaper with extreme prejudice': Windows 11 desktop becoming a giant Harry Potter ad has provoked a rebellion.

The TP-Link Archer 8 Ultra router shown on a table next to a laptop, next to the TP-Link Deco 8 Ultra mesh router unit placed on a wooden cabinet in a living room

Wi-Fi 8 explained — TP-Link launches first routers, but here's why most Wi-Fi 6 and 7 owners should probably wait

By Darren Allan Published 7 September 26

Wi-Fi 8 offers a whole lot of performance benefits over Wi-Fi 7, but there are nuances to consider with any upgrade decision.

Windows 11 could get a free speed boost soon as Microsoft promises 'significant gains' for boot times

By Darren Allan Published 7 September 26

Microsoft exec also underlined promise that Windows 11 will run better on 8GB of RAM.

Modders have solved Nvidia DLSS 5's two biggest issues — boosting performance massively, and bringing it to more games — but I wouldn't risk doing either

By Darren Allan Published 7 September 26

The Swapper and Autopilot mods for DLSS 5 allow for easily applying the tech to all kinds of games, with a nifty additional trick in the case of the latter.

A young teenager is playing a PC game and celebrating a victory.

I was an Nvidia DLSS 5 sceptic — but here are 5 reasons why I'm now hopeful that it'll revolutionize graphics in PC games

By Darren Allan Published 6 September 26

It's been a big week for Nvidia's next instalment of DLSS, with the tech seemingly reaching a major turning point.

Iiyama PC Level 15FX167 laptop shown from the rear with stand extended

How has this not been done before? This gaming laptop's innovative integrated stand helps keep the CPU cooler — and helps with ergonomics too

By Darren Allan Published 3 September 26

New Japanese laptop boasts a clever cooling innovation that might catch on elsewhere.

Man upset at gaming PC, resting head on arms

Microsoft wants to make Windows 11 'secure by default' — but some gamers are up in arms about this security feature that 'wrecks' their frame rates

By Darren Allan Published 3 September 26

Some gamers are up in arms, while others believe that this security feature is a must-have for keeping their PC safe.

Acer Swift Blade 14 being used by a person sat on a concrete step outside

The new Acer Swift Blade 14 is the world's lightest laptop to be launched globally

By Darren Allan Published 3 September 26

IFA 2026 Acer had plenty to show off at IFA 2026, including a highly repairable laptop alongside the featherweight Swift Blade 14.

Dell 14S 2026, four laptops next to each other showing four different colors for this notebook: beige, pink, green and blue

Dell's new 14-inch laptop clearly takes aim at the MacBook Neo — but I'm worried about the price

By Darren Allan Published 2 September 26

IFA 2026 This Dell laptop looks to be a smart rival for Apple's MacBook Neo, but some question marks remain over pricing.

'It's been particularly bad since Blackwell': Nvidia's new GPU driver has another nasty bug — and gamers are rapidly losing patience

By Darren Allan Published 1 September 26

Gamers aren't happy about the quality of Nvidia's drivers of late, and a new bug has prompted some fresh venting.

Windows 11's antivirus is repeatedly telling users that it's turned off — but don't panic, this is a bug and it's working just fine

By Darren Allan Published 1 September 26

Think Windows 11's antivirus is broken? Thankfully it isn't, although the app is suffering from a pretty frustrating bug.

TP-Link Deco 8 Ultra mesh router unit placed on a wooden cabinet in a living room

TP-Link reveals 'world's first Wi-Fi 8 lineup' at IFA 2026 with Archer 8 Ultra router and Deco 8 Ultra mesh Wi-Fi system

By Darren Allan Published 1 September 26

Wi-Fi 8 delivers important advances in dealing with wireless signal interference and managing more devices effectively.

Nvidia DLSS 5 leak sparks major turnaround among PC gamers — as some brand it an 'insanely huge graphical update' that means 'there's no going back'

By Darren Allan Published 29 August 26

'Remarkable difference in tone of the reactions': the negativity around DLSS 5 is melting away, it seems.

A woman getting frustrated by her laptop

Windows 11 update arrives with much-wanted features — and very-much unwanted bugs that mess up the mouse cursor and wallpaper

By Darren Allan Published 28 August 26

Miss Microsoft's old-style chunky white mouse pointer? A weird Windows 11 bug turns the cursor retro — and it's messing with wallpapers too.

Time for gamers to upgrade to Windows 11? Nvidia GPU driver support for Windows 10 ends in two months — here's what you need to know

By Darren Allan Published 27 August 26

Nvidia GPU driver support is coming to an end for Windows 10 — here's what that means for security and your favorite PC games.

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Nvidia's GeForce Now is officially coming to the Steam Machine — here's why that's great news for gaming in your living room

By Darren Allan Published 26 August 26

Some gamers have been hoping for official GeForce Now support on Valve's PC — and that dream is now a reality.

Darren Allan

Articles by: Darren Allan

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