Articles by Alex Blake, Freelance Contributor

Alex Blake has been fooling around with computers since the early 1990s, and since that time he's learned a thing or two about tech. No more than two things, though. That's all his brain can hold. As well as TechRadar, Alex writes for iMore, Digital Trends and Creative Bloq, among others. He was previously commissioning editor at MacFormat magazine. That means he mostly covers the world of Apple and its latest products, but also Windows, computer peripherals, mobile apps, and much more beyond. When not writing, you can find him hiking the English countryside and gaming on his PC.

Articles by: Alex Blake

It’s official — the Google Nest Audio and Nest Mini are dead, here’s what that means for current owners

By Alex Blake published 18 June 26

Google has discontinued its Nest Audio and Nest Mini speakers as the launch of the firm’s Home Speaker nears.

This Google-backed ‘phone cluster computing’ project is turning retired Pixels into low-cost Linux data centers — as UCSD researchers say a 2,000-phone cluster will soon support 100 computer science classes

By Alex Blake published 17 June 26

Google says old phones could see their components reused as affordable cloud servers.

The Commodore Callback retro-themed flip phone.

‘A speed bump for your mind’: Commodore’s retro-inspired flip phone could be the perfect way to break your smartphone addiction

By Alex Blake published 16 June 26

The Commodore Callback is a retro-flavored phone that sits between smartphones and dumbphones.

Buildings inside the FBI's Kinetic Cyber Range training facility.

FBI gives first peek inside 22,000-square-foot town it’s built for digital crime training — the ‘one of a kind’ facility has a gas station, houses, and a data center with 200 hackable servers

By Alex Blake published 16 June 26

The FBI has built a town with homes, businesses and hackable servers to help train its cyber agents.

This ‘personal sun intelligence system’ offers a high-tech way to protect your skin from UV rays

By Alex Blake published 15 June 26

The90 Gem is a smart necklace that measures your UV exposure and helps prevent sunburn.

‘Glaringly inconsistent and often utterly inscrutable’: macOS 27 Golden Gate just fixed one of my biggest macOS Tahoe gripes

By Alex Blake published 12 June 26

Apple has fixed its divisive menu design in macOS 27 Golden Gate, much to Apple users’ relief.

An Apple Watch with the Walkie Talkie app running on it against a blue background.

‘We’ve used this feature for years’: Apple has ditched a fun Apple Watch feature from watchOS 27 — and some users are missing it already

By Alex Blake published 11 June 26

Apple’s Walkie Talkie feature is missing from watchOS 27, and some Apple Watch users are upset.

iOS 27’s new Siri AI gesture could cause mass confusion by breaking with 15 years of iPhone tradition — but I’m confident I’ll adapt

By Alex Blake published 11 June 26

iOS 27 comes with a new gesture for Siri AI that could cause problems for your muscle memory.

An iPhone showing Apple's Spatial Reframing feature at WWDC 2026.

Spatial Reframing in iOS 27 might finally turn me into a photo pro — here’s how it works, and why it could be your iPhone’s secret storage weapon

By Alex Blake published 9 June 26

iOS 27 users will get a Spatial Reframing AI tool to change their photos’ perspectives.

The Apple HomePod Mini on an orange background

The most exciting thing about the new Siri is the new hardware it’ll unlock — here’s what it could mean for a new Apple TV, HomePod mini and Siri Remote

By Alex Blake published 8 June 26

Siri will get an AI upgrade at Apple’s WWDC show today. Here’s how it could affect the Apple TV and HomePod mini.

A hand stealing an iPhone from someone's pocket

A phone is snatched every eight minutes in London — but iPhones could soon get this Android-inspired upgrade to frustrate thieves

By Alex Blake published 27 May 26

iOS users might soon get a new feature designed to protect your private data from phone thieves.

‘They choose not to buy because they want to develop their own’: China just refused to buy a single Nvidia AI chip as Trump’s plan backfires

By Alex Blake published 26 May 26

China has refused to buy Nvidia’s H200 AI chips despite personal intervention from Donald Trump.

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Apple’s Fitbit Air-rivaling AI health coach is delayed, new report claims, and that’s bad news for fitness fans

By Alex Blake published 26 May 26

Apple’s rumored AI health coach has been delayed and won’t appear at WWDC in June, a new report claims.

An iPhone displaying the Crash Detection feature in iOS.

This little-known iPhone feature just saved a driver from a 330ft fall — and it could save your life too

By Alex Blake published 25 May 26

Apple’s Crash Detection feature saved a woman’s life by calling emergency services after her car fell 330ft off a mountain.

‘More intuitive than ever’ — iOS 27’s new AI voice controls could finally make Siri feel smart

By Alex Blake published 21 May 26

Recent accessibility upgrades might hint at agentic AI powers coming to Siri in iOS 27.

WhatsApp’s secret new feature will delete texts once you’ve read them — and it could be coming to iOS and Android soon

By Alex Blake published 20 May 26

WhatsApp is testing a new feature that can automatically delete messages once they’ve been read.