Week in Review: The top stories in phones, computing, AI and more

Plus: Black Friday tech deals – the best offers in the US and UK
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November 28, 2025
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Welcome to the Week in Review
 
 
Intro – Lance
If you’re reading this, it means you’re taking a quick break from digging through the thousands of Black Friday deals dropping virtually everywhere, on everything from LED face masks and back massagers to ultra-grade smartwatches and robot vacuums. 
 
I appreciate that, because it means that either you needed to take a breather or, perhaps, you want a bit more clarity from yours truly on all that transpired this week in the world of tech.
 
To be honest, Black Friday has dominated this week for the TechRadar team. We've been tracking the deals at Amazon and the other big retailers in the US and UK, and we have hundreds of deal posts and round-up articles featuring the best bargains we've found – a great place to start is with our picks of the best Black Friday deals in the US, and the best Black Friday deals in the UK. Personally, I'm on the hunt for one of the best Black Friday vacuum deals.
 
This is also a fantastic time to lower the cost of your streaming habits. I’ve seen a lot of great deals on things like HBO Max and even Apple TV. The big question is, can you cancel your current full-price package and then sign up for a deal? Sometimes the answer is yes.

Away from Black Friday there has still been a fair bit of 'regular' tech news. We've been impressed with OpenAI's improved Voice mode integration for ChatGPT, Apple looks to be outselling rival Samsung in the smartphone space for the first time in ages, and we got some new insights into just how uphill a task Microsoft still faces in trying to convince Windows 10 users that they really should make the switch to Windows 11.
 
All this shopping has left me with little time to catch up on the final season of Stranger Things, which kicked off this week (I managed to consume one episode), but I did watch an adorable holiday ad from… wait for it… Apple.
 
Whether you're deal-hunting or taking it easy, enjoy your weekend.

Lance Ulanoff, Editor at Large
 
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Today's best Black Friday Deals, hand-picked by our experts
 
TechRadar
These are today's best Black Friday deals on some of the top TVs I've tested this year
There are hundreds of Black Friday TV deals up for grabs, but these are our expert's favorite deals, on flagship OLED and mini-LED models he's personally tested.
 
View US and UK deals
 
 
Black Friday Apple deals LIVE: don't miss these big savings on iPhones, Apple Watch, MacBooks and more
 
TechRadar
Today's 160+ best Black Friday tech deals in the US: shop record-low prices at Amazon, Best Buy, Walmart, and more
We're rounding up the very best of today's best deals on TVs, laptops, headphone, appliances and more, with unmissable offers on some of the best tech we've tested.
 
View US deals
 
 
I've been writing about laptops for over 20 years and these are the best US and UK Black Friday laptop deals I've found today
 
TechRadar
Today's 120+ best Black Friday deals in the UK: unmissable tech bargains at Amazon, Currys, Argos and more
Don't miss our latest pick of the best offers on TVs, laptops, Amazon devices, smartwatches and more, including record-low prices on lots of our favourite tech.
 
View UK deals
 
 
These are today's 47 best Black Friday smartwatch deals – save up to 54% on Garmin, Apple Watch, and more
 
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The week in AI
 
Sam Altman and the OpenAI logo
OpenAI has tweaked the way ChatGPT works (Stringer / Tomohiro Ohsumi / Getty Images)
ChatGPT's new Voice mode is here – and we're impressed
ChatGPT has tweaked the way that Voice mode works inside the AI chatbot, and based on our early testing, it works really well – and could be the new default for chatting with AI.
 
Read the full story
 
 
5 things you need to know about the new ChatGPT Voice integration
 
 
The Trump Administration launches its plan for global AI dominance
 
 
Sam Altman says his new AI device should feel like a "cabin by a lake"
 
 
 
 
The week in Phones
 
The iPhone 17 Pro
Apple saw strong sales of the iPhone 17 series (Future)
Apple is outselling Samsung for the first time in 14 years
The latest analyst predictions are that Apple will sell more phones than Samsung in 2025 for the first time in 14 years – helped by strong initial sales of the iPhone 17 series.
 
Read the full story
 
 
Sony just launched the 'world's largest' 200MP smartphone sensor
 
 
A new foldable iPhone price rumor suggests it could cost $2,400
 
 
Try these 5 fixes to improve battery life on iOS 26
 
 
 
 
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The week in Computing
 
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Windows 11 hasn't impressed everyone (Ollyy / Shutterstock)
Is Windows 11 fighting a losing battle?
Despite Microsoft's best efforts, Windows 10 just won't die: new comments from a Dell executive underline just how popular the old software remains compared to Windows 11.
 
Read the full story
 
 
Are users swapping Windows 10 for Linux?
 
 
Android-powered desktop PCs are coming soon
 
 
Two PC makers warn of price hikes for new computers
 
 
 
 
The week in Entertainment
 
Stranger Things
Stranger Things is back (Netflix)
The best new movies and shows to stream this weekend
Shock horror! Stranger Things season 5 is the biggest new release of the week. However, there's plenty more to choose from on other streaming services besides the Netflix hit.
 
See our top picks
 
 
Avengers: Doomsday's first trailer might be released early
 
 
New Supergirl tease hints that a trailer could be released very soon
 
 
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