The FCC wants to expel one of Hong Kong's biggest telecom operators from US networks

The FCC wants to expel one of Hong Kong's biggest telecom operators from US networks

The FCC is moving to expel Hong Kong Telecom (HKT) from US telecom networks, citing national security concerns. The agency sent HKT an "Order to Show Cause," which directs the company to explain why the FCC should not begin revocation proceedings against it. The 30-page order outlines the agency's reasoning, including a focus on applying new certification and disclosure requirements to entities "owned by, controlled by or subject to the jurisdiction or direction of a foreign adversary." “Today’s Order continues the FCC’s work of ensuring that CCP-controlled entities that pose national security risks to our country cannot connect to our telecom networks,” said FCC Chairman Brendan Carr in a statement announcing the move. HKT is one of the largest telecommunications companies in Hong Kong and is a subsidiary of communications giant PCCW. Roughly 18 percent of PCCW is owned by China Unicom, a state-owned telecommunications company. HKT is not the only target of the agency's ongoing effort to root out potential vulnerabilities. On October 28, the FCC will be voting on steps to further strengthen guardrails under its equipment authorization program to protect US networks and the communications supply chain against national security threats. The past month has seen ramped-up regulatory activity from both China and the United States aimed at companies that operate in or generate revenues from one another’s markets. Chinese regulators have been investigating large tech acquisitions , telling local companies not to buy American AI chips and tightening export controls on rare earth minerals. Much of this comes against the backdrop of trade negotiations between the two countries. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/general/the-fcc-wants-to-expel-one-of-hong-kongs-biggest-telecom-operators-from-us-networks-155204605.html?src=rss

Asus’ latest gaming NUC mini PC is powered by a Ryzen X3D chip

Asus’ latest gaming NUC mini PC is powered by a Ryzen X3D chip

The Intel NUC family of tiny mini PCs was ahead of its time in many ways—and Asus apparently agreed, given that the company took the brand off Intel’s hands in 2023 . The new ROG NUC series under Asus’ gaming brand is kind of a replacement for Intel’s gaming-focused NUC Extreme , albeit without the discrete graphics option. And funny enough, the newest Asus NUC has a surprise inside: an AMD processor. We heard from Asus back at CES 2025 that the company was looking to expand its NUC (“Next Unit of Computing,” if you’re wondering) offerings with AMD options. The ROG NUC 2025 (also known as the ROG Magic 9 Mini) has already been available for a while, but a new variant is coming with a familiar processor: the Ryzen 9 9955HX3D. This is technically a laptop chip, like all NUC machines and most mini PCs use, but it’s also a phenomenally powerful one , hanging out in some of the most powerful workstation laptops and mini PCs. And yes, it’s a little strange to see a device with the “NUC” branding with an AMD processor. It reminds me of the first time I saw a Sonic the Hedgehog game on a Nintendo console. (If you’re reading this and your birth year starts with “2”, that was a big deal back in the day, I promise.) JD.com This new AMD-powered ROG NUC appears to be a China-only release at the moment, according to VideoCardz . It’s paired to an Nvidia RTX 5070 GPU (the laptop version to fit in the tiny dimensions of the NUC case), 16GB of memory (DDR5-5600, slightly slower than other models) and a 1TB SSD. At launch it costs 15,000 yuan (approximately $2,100 USD). Whether we’ll see this come to other countries isn’t known at the moment—there’s a lot of talk about “economic climate” whenever anyone asks about availability or prices, including Asus, when I talked to representatives last week. “Economic climate” is corporate speak for Trump tariffs, by the way.

Deals: M5 MacBook Pro $800 off w/ trade, M5 iPad Pro $50 off My Best Buy, iPhone 15 Pro Max $750 off, more

Deals: M5 MacBook Pro $800 off w/ trade, M5 iPad Pro $50 off My Best Buy, iPhone 15 Pro Max $750 off, more

With the official reveal of the new M5-powered MacBook Pro and iPad Pro, today’s 9to5Toys Lunch Break is kicking off with some deals on both. Best Buy has some enhanced trade-in values live on the new M5 MacBook Pro at up to $800 off and members can land an additional 10% off . It too is offering $50 off the M5 iPad Pro with no trades for members alongside configs as low as $499 with trades. Aside from that we have iPhone 15 Pro Max at up to $750 off as well as Apple Watch Utra 2 at $150 off , and AirPods 4 with ANC back at Prime Day pricing. All of that and much more awaits below. more…

Ripple acquires GTreasury, a platform used by Fortune 500 companies for managing cash, foreign exchange, and risk, for $1B, set to close in the coming months (Krisztian Sandor/CoinDesk)

Ripple acquires GTreasury, a platform used by Fortune 500 companies for managing cash, foreign exchange, and risk, for $1B, set to close in the coming months (Krisztian Sandor/CoinDesk)

Krisztian Sandor / CoinDesk : Ripple acquires GTreasury, a platform used by Fortune 500 companies for managing cash, foreign exchange, and risk, for $1B, set to close in the coming months —  The deal, pending regulatory approvals, would give Ripple access to large enterprise clients as it is building out financial services around its digital asset business.

A four-pack of AirTags is back on sale for a record-low price

A four-pack of AirTags is back on sale for a record-low price

Apple deals can be hard to come by, but right now you can save on one of the company's smallest (and arguably one if its most useful) gadgets. A four-pack of Apple AirTags is down to $65 right now, which is 34 percent off its usual price. That brings each AirTag in the bundle down to $16.25 each. If you're an Apple user, then the AirTag is the best Bluetooth tracker on the market for you. You can put these little discs in your wallet, in a backpack or in your luggage while you're traveling. Your AirTag's location will show up in your Find My app, powered by the vast network of iPhones, iPads and other compatible devices that receive the AirTag's Bluetooth signal. Keep in mind these only work when close enough to participating devices to be located. You can attach AirTags to just about anything thanks to an abundance of available accessories . Their built-in speakers can play a tone, triggered from your iPhone, to help you find them when the object they're affixed to is lost. On iPhone 11 and newer models, you can take advantage of the AirTag's Ultra Wideband capability and have your phone lead you right to your AirTag, complete with directional arrows on your iPhone screen. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/a-four-pack-of-airtags-is-back-on-sale-for-a-record-low-price-143112085.html?src=rss

Deals: Amazon slashes $250 off M4 Pro MacBook Pro, now $1,749

Deals: Amazon slashes $250 off M4 Pro MacBook Pro, now $1,749

MacBook Pro deals are increasing heading into the weekend, with Amazon issuing a $250 price drop on the M4 Pro 14-inch model. Plus, grab prices as low as $1,399 on closeout models. Save $250 on Apple's M4 Pro MacBook Pro this week. Amazon's $1,749.99 M4 Pro MacBook Pro deal has returned, reflecting a $250 discount off MSRP on the 12-core CPU model with a 16-core GPU, 24GB of unified memory, and 512GB of storage. You can pick up the steep discount in your choice of Space Black or Silver. Buy M4 Pro MPB for $1,749.99 Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums