https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DOC-420034A1.pdf

In March 2026, new FCC rules outlawed router updates for Chinese manufactured routers. The last firmware/security update would be March 2027. Bowing to public pressure (and the prospect of many millions of routers being unsecured), the FCC recently moved that date to Jan 1, 2029.

Several of the big players (eg., Netgear and Eero) have received a Conditional Approval exception, which allows them to continue updates after this. Others (like TP-Link) have applied for an exception, which is likely to be approved if they submit a strict plan to move manufacturing to the US.

The FCC says the following must occur outside of China:

• Design and Development (The intellectual property, schematics, and architecture)
• Firmware and Software Compilation (Where the code is actually written and signed)
• Component Manufacturing (The physical fabrication of the boards and chips)
• Final Assembly

Unfortunately, manufacturing can still occur in other countries like Vietnam, but it is still a win for the US and a loss for China.

If any TexAgs are looking at buying a new router, you want to be sure that it has FCC compliance approval. Routers are still too expensive - like our paying for 5G and it not living up to the promises. But we get higher pricing with each incremental change.

Good Trump/FCC.

https://www.waveform.com/tools/bufferbloat

Regarding router speeds - this website grades how well your router deals with downloads or uploads a file. It grades how much of your advertised speed you are paying for is being bottle necked by the router itself, since we are already on the subject.