China eases export ban on car computer chips, Xbox ‘throws in the towel’

China will begin easing an export ban on automotive computer chips vital to production of cars across the world as part of a trade deal struck between the US and China, the White House has said. The White House confirmed details of the deal in a new fact sheet after Xi Jinping and Donald Trump met in South Korea this week. The nations also reached agreements on US soybean exports, the supply of rare earth minerals, and the materials used in production of the drug fentanyl. The deal de-escalates a trade war between the world’s two largest economies after Trump hit China with tariffs after he entered office this year. BBC

Xbox has essentially thrown in the towel when it comes to console wars as it moves away from consoles in general. Don’t get consoles confused with hardware though, as Xbox has made it very clear that production on new hardware will continue for the foreseeable future, including a next-gen system that sounds like a console/PC hybrid. The latest leaks and rumours suggest the next Xbox device will be priced and supported like a PC, allowing users to access Steam as well as Xbox games through Xbox Game Pass and the like. Gaming Bible 

Looking for an extremely versatile security camera that won’t break the bank? Then Aqara’s latest model, the G100, is definitely worth checking out. Offering IP65 water resistance, it can be used indoors or outdoors, and is compatible with various smart home platforms including Apple Home, Google Home and Alexa. Other key features include a MicroSD card slot for storing up to 512GB footage locally while full AI-based detection of humans, pets and parcels is available for those subscribing to Aqara’s HomeGuardian plan. TechRadar

Tony Blair has said “history won’t forgive us” if the UK falls behind in the race to harness quantum computing, a frontier technology predicted to trigger the next wave of breakthroughs in everything from drug design to climate modelling. The former British Labour prime minister, whose thinktank and consultancy, the Tony Blair Institute, is backed by tech industry leaders including the Oracle founder, Larry Ellison, warned: “The country risks failing to convert its leadership in quantum research.” The Guardian 

The Ray-Ban Meta Gen 2 glasses are very good smart glasses. If you’re into face computers, these will do what you want them to do. They snap pictures, record video, play music, and take calls. You can use AI voice commands to find your way around, translate foreign languages live, or inquire about what kind of spider happens to be dangling right in front of your face at the moment. The $379 frames are Meta’s entry-level smart glasses, and a direct successor to the original that became a smash hit. Wired

If you ever tried the infamous “Update and shut down” option in any Windows build, it often leads to a reboot instead to an actual shutdown. Now, Microsoft has finally fixed this issue starting with Windows 11 25H2 Build 26200.7019 (or 26100.7019 on 24H2). According to the Windows Latest, Microsoft has shipped this broken functionality way back with Windows 10, and has never fixed it since. However, the Windows teams working behind the update have finally managed to ship a working solution.” Tech PowerUp