Australian government making noises about doing something regarding Facebook and Google
Amazon wants to launch 3,236 internet satellites, just like SpaceX
Reviews of AMD’s new CPUs and GPUs are ready to eat
Experience the Apollo 11 moon landing in real-time
Cheap refurb Xbox One, 55" LG OLED TV, 2TB SATA SSD, Huawei 4G mi-fi, EA Access & Game Pass Ultimate subscriptions, LIFX stuff
The ACCC has been working on its Digital Platforms Inquiry for over 18 months and last week, handed the final report in to the government. That report is not public (a preliminary report from 2018 is here) but Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has responded to it, saying that there's "genuine competition issues to look at" about Google and Facebook's businesses in Australia, plus "issues around privacy, about the collection of data and how it's used". No shit buddy, hopefully you actually read the report and act on the recommendations, unlike 99% of reports you ask for then ignore.
Amazon wants a slice of the satellite internet that doesn't suck market, applying with the FCC to launch 3,236 communications satellites that operate at altitudes of around 590 to 630km - just like SpaceX. Absolutely not surprising considering Amazon's head honcho Jeff Bezos also has a side-gig owning Blue Origin, a rocket company that operates in a very similar fashion to SpaceX. Amazon's calling theirs "Kuiper" (presumably after the massive asteroid belt with the same name). Dunno when it'll kick off, but I doubt they'll beat SpaceX to the punch considering SpaceX already has 60 of the things orbiting Earth.
AMD's new Zen 2 based CPUs (Ryzen 3000-series) and new RDNA based GPUs (Radeon RX 5700) have hit the benchmark labs of tech reviewers and the verdict is - they're great. The Ryzen 3700X and 3900X CPUs cost way less than the Intel equivalents (Core i9-9900K & Core i7-9700K) and perform better. What's not to love about that?! The Radeon RX 5700 and 5700 XT are in a similar, but not as exaggerated position compared to their Nvidia equivalents (GeForce RTX 2060 & GeForce RTX 2060 Super), priced lower and offering similar performance most of the time. Good time to build a new mid-range gaming rig with AMD bits in it.
As we get closer to celebrating the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11's successful landing on the moon, enjoy this real-time simulation of the 8 day, 3 hour, 18 minute and 35 second mission. It compiles transcripts, photos, videos and mission control audio and replays it all simultaneously so you can really immerse yourself. Chuck it up on a big screen and let it play for the entire 8 days! If you get bored you can skip to the milestones (orbiting the Moon, stepping foot on the moon, landing back on Earth, etc.). Amazing how much information is out there and publicly available so something like this could be made.
Refurb/pre-owned Xbox One 500GB from EB Games on eBay - $159 using the code PRETECH
55" LG OLED55B8STB 4K TV - $1562 + delivery from VideoPro on eBay with the code POLAR20
Umart has 2TB Sandisk SATA SSDs for $299 + delivery
Huawei E5577 4G mi-fi (from Optus but usually unlocked) - $29 at Woolworths
12m subscription to EA Access for Xbox One - $25.59 from CD Keys
3m subscription to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate - $21.99 also from CD Keys
Bunnings has loads of LIFX gear on sale
🎶 I Wanna Be Your Dog - The Stooges
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The Sizzle is created on Wathaurong land and acknowledges the traditional owners of country throughout Australia, recognising their continuing connection to land, water and community. I pay my respect to them and their cultures and to elders both past and present.