### Issue 1882 - Thursday 6th July, 2023

## In Today's Issue

- Meta's Twitter clone Threads launches, still rough around the edges
- Victoria could have had Opal-like contactless payments years ago but govt chose not to
- Facial recognition tech used carelessly at some of Australia's largest stadiums
- ASRock's got a low profile Intel Arc A380 GPU that's great for SFF PCs
- Cheap Ultimate, Nintendo & Timezone gift cards, Denon AV receiver, fully loaded MBP, eero 6+, LG portable monitor, N-One Android tablet, Pixel 7, Intel Optane & Samsung SSDs, Bose Smart Soundbar 300, Superloop NBN

## The News

### Meta's Twitter clone Threads launches, still rough around the edges

Meta/Instagram's Twitter clone, Threads, is now ready for public use. As predicted, it's had huge take up already as all you need to get started is the smartphone app and an Instagram account. Unfortunately they've made it so your timeline is full of posts from people you don't follow and is not in chronological order. It's a goddamn mess. I assume they did it so people aren't confronted with an empty timeline when they first use Threads. Threads literally just launched so I assume there's way more features to come, they just had to get something out the door ASAP while Twitter while chokes on its own vomit. It also doesn't federate with any other ActivityPub services at the moment, but when they do, it'll be great to view posts from people I like on Threads who won't use Mastodon, in Mastodon, alongside the people I like on Mastodon that won't use Threads. Threads is not available in the EU though, as "Meta is awaiting further clarification from the European Commission" about the EU's Digital Markets Act, "which contains provisions on sharing user data across different platforms".

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### Victoria could have had Opal-like contactless payments years ago but govt chose not to

According to documents obtained by the ABC, Victoria could have had contactless payments built-in to Myki readers back in 2020. VIX and NTT got all their shit together and submitted a plan to government, but after months of sitting on it, just decided not to do anything. The ABC said that "senior figures, who are unable to speak publicly, are still at a loss about why the government refused to test the technology". Something really stinks about this, particularly when you consider that NTT and Cubic have complained loudly that Conduent was given "the inside running by the government" on overhauling Myki despite it being the most expensive option and Conduent having the worst track record globally. A more cynical person would assume corruption in Victoria's department of transport. Not me, publisher of The Sizzle, liable for defamation depending what he writes. Other people might, but not me.

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### Facial recognition tech used carelessly at some of Australia's largest stadiums

After exposing the use of facial recognition technology without proper informed consent at major Australian retailers, Choice is back exposing the same damn thing at Australian stadiums. The SCG, Allianz Stadium, Qudos Bank Arena and the MCG are all using facial recognition and generating "faceprints", but are not getting informed consent from patrons prior to entry and do not detail why it being collected, how it is stored and whether the data is shared. They're supposed to, even under Australia's current weak as piss privacy regulations, but they can't even meet this bare minimum requirement. It sucks because these joints are tight with companies like TEG (aka Ticketek), who are going hard on being data brokers, selling the information they have on customers to other businesses. It's not a big leap to imagine the stadium making a bit of extra coin selling faceprint data to TEG, who then sell it to FlyBuys or NewsCorp or whatever.

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## Something I Saw On The Internet

### ASRock's got a low profile Intel Arc A380 GPU that's great for SFF PCs

ASRock has released a low profile Arc A380 GPU. You might be thinking, "who gives a shit about a low powered GPU from Intel" but this little guy is handy for anyone using a small form factor computer who needs a half-decent GPU. The A380 LP 6G doesn't need additional power via a 6-pin or 8-pin plug, something SFF PCs usually don't have. It could make for a nice ultra-budget HTPC that sits under your TV thanks to the excellent video transcoding capabilities of the Arc GPUs and act as a handy 1080p gaming rig as the A380 can handle a range of modern games on low-medium quality settings. Also great for a cheap kids computer, just buy an 8th-gen or newer SFF PC off Facebook Marketplace for like $200, slap in this GPU and it'll keep em happy until they get their own damn jobs.

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## Bargains

- 15% bonus load on Ultimate gift cards (Good Guys, EB, Officeworks, JB & more) at Coles next week
- Denon AVR-S760H 7.2 channel 8K AV receiver - $733 from Home Audio Sales eBay store
- Apple MacBook Pro 16" MMQW3X/A (M1 Max, 64GB RAM, 4TB SSD) - $3,989.05 from Mobileciti
- 15% off Timezone gift cards at Card.Gift
- 10% off Nintendo eShop gift cards at JB Hi-Fi
- eero 6+ mesh wi-fi system (3-pack) - $409.99 from Amazon
- LG Gram +View 16MQ70 16" portable IPS USB-C monitor 2560x1600 - $370.90 from Amazon Japan
- N-One NPad X Android 13 tablet (10.95" 2K display, 4G dual SIM, Helio G99 SoC, 8GB RAM, 128GB storage) - $296 from Banggood
- Google Pixel 7 256GB - $829 from JB Hi-Fi
- Intel Optane P1600X 118GB PCIe 3.0 SSD - $108.04 or 2x for $194.74 from Amazon USA
- Samsung 990 PRO SSD 1TB PCIe 4.0 SSD - $117.20 from Amazon USA
- Miyoo Mini Plus V3 64GB handheld gaming device - $51.38 for new customers & new app install on Temu
- Bose Smart Soundbar 300 - $390 from The Good Guys or Amazon
- Superloop 100/40 or 1000/50 NBN & free eero 6+ router - $75/m, $99/m (for first 6 months & must stay customer for 18 months for the router)

## Image Of The Day

Mark Vomit 2020 (markvomit/ Tumblr)

## The End

📻 I Don't Wanna Be Funny Anymore - Lucy Dacus

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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.