If you want to get in on the Giz AU Wave action (and who doesn’t, let’s be honest!), drop me an email at nick@gizmodo.com.au with your wave details and I’ll add you to the list!

There’s something quintessentially Australian about sport. Even for those among us whose biggest sporting achievements are winning a Grade 3 chess tournament, something about sports is ingrained in the national psyche. We’ve all played backyard cricket. We’ve all watched a grand final. We’ve all celebrated our team’s victory and mourned their losses. It’s as Aussie as barbecues and drinking beer.

So for Grand Final week—which started on Saturday with the AFL’s top two teams battling it out for supremacy and concludes next Sunday with the NRL’s final match of the season—we’ve decided to look at the tech behind our favourite sports. Expect to see posts on some of the most high-tech sports around, the best sports iPhone apps, the top sports video games, ludicrous fitness gadgets and heaps more.

So settle in, order a pizza, keep the beer fridge fully stocked and get ready for sports galore. The ref’s blown his whistle, and the match has begun…

Playing with balls is Gizmodo AU’s week-long look at the technology behind the sports we love, from the jerseys to the balls and everything in between. Go the Tahs!

It was a great night, with a great crowd and a fantastic atmosphere. If you’re based in Sydney, you should definitely try and make it to the second episode in a couple of weeks.

The games show will be going live later today, and both should hit iTunes and other Podcast syndication networks tomorrow.

[Byteside]

First up, we’ve got a new Night Editor to look after editing all the US stuff that comes through overnight. Her name’s Elly and for her first week, she’s doing a damned fine job. She also spends a bit of time editing comments, so make sure you make her feel welcome.

One of the benefits of having a night ed is that I get to focus on the new and local stuff, rather than making sure all the US content is being edited. Hopefully you’ve noticed there’s been a surge in the number of posts with an Aussie flag next to them this week – that’s something that’s here to stay. I’m now based in our Darlinghurst offices full time as well, which means that I might actually get around to organising that Giz AU drinks session sometime soon. No promises though.

So, hope you enjoy all the bonus content I’ll be spewing out through my fingers. In the meantime, have a great weekend!

It’s as easy as mocking k-Rudd’s street cred: All you need to do is be signed up to Flickr, then click here and then start hitting the “Send to Group” button on the individual pics you want to share with us.

Now, what type of photos do we want from you?

First of all, anything gadgety. That’s why you’re here, after all. Send us pics of your phones both old and brand new, your ultimate home theatre setup, your modded PCs, your oldschool Walkman collection or anything else you know we’d love.

Add to that any cool advertising you might see (preferably for something gadgety, but not restricted to that), cool stuff you see on the street, things that you reckon could be our Image of the Day, or anything else that is randomly cool. That doesn’t mean your entire collection of Fluffy, your Nanna’s new puppy. But if Fluffy happens to have an obsession with mobile phones, send in the evidence!

So come on – start sharing!

[Giz AU Flickr Pool]

It’s not just a superficial design change though – we’ve jumped over to a whole new CMS which should significantly improve the backend of the site for the user. These improvements include making it easier to share your favourite Giz posts with the world via Digg, Facebook, Twitter and about 50 other social networking sites, Facebook Connect to let you comment on Giz using your Facebook profile, and a better archive management solution to let you browse through our extensive back catalog of gadget news and reviews easily.

We’re working through the initial teething problems now, but stick with us and you’ll have an even better Gizmodo experience. Let us know what you think!

Here’s the stuff that we didn’t post today. (Until now, obviously.)

• The Pentagon’s planning to research telepathic communications for soldiers on the battlefield by way of allotting $US4 million to the cause. Not that we don’t think it’ll work eventually, but this seems quite far out. As in decades. [Wired]

• Here are some iPhone concept photos that are “unibody”. Isn’t the iPhone close enough to unibody already? Or is it unibody? In either case, we don’t care. [Business Insider]

• Here are some budget, environmentally friendly displays for Hong Kong. Why do we not care? It’s for Hong Kong. It’s budget. And it’s environmentally friendly. [Engadget]

• Someone made a recycled cardboard cover for a Sony laptop. Really. SOMEONE DID THIS. [Unpluggd]

• Best Buy put up a landing page for the Pre. Wowiewowwowwow. Is this going to make the Pre launch any sooner? [Treonauts]

• Swarovski encrusted Xbox 360 microphones. We post some ridiculous stuff for rich people, but we have to draw the line somewhere. Nobody should buy this. [Born Rich]

Here’s the stuff that we didn’t post today. (Until now, obviously.)

• Here’s Sprint’s version of an HTC phone that looks quite like their T-Mobile Dash. Finally! Sprint will get a phone that’s underpowered and not all that usable (based on its previous incarnations). [Boy Genius]

• This rumour that’s not true about the PS3 getting slimmed down at E3. Why didn’t we post it? Cause it’s not true. [Engadget]

• The iQue Blue Ember grill. Why does it have an i prefix? There’s no iPod dock on it. Que es eso, Blue Ember?! [CNET]

• A Thai tea ad with a keyboard that’s made out of a teabag. We didn’t post it because it makes no sense. [Coloribus via Raw Feed]

If you just can’t get enough of Gizmodo—or maybe our site is blocked at the workplace—you can receive the most interesting stories, breaking news and most popular posts by following us on Twitter. You can also help us report the news by tipping us (via @giz_au) with awesome deals coming up, inside scoops, DIY hacks, and whatever else you think is cool.

In return, we’ll tweet our every thought, bowel movement, song lyrics stuck in our heads, and a lot more crap we think is awesome and are just dying to share, in our own individual Twitter accounts—which you can also find by clicking the Twitter links next to our names in the masthead (the column on the left).

[Follow Gizmodo on Twitter here.]

From the US, you’ve got Blam, Chen, Rothman, Jesus, Mahoney, Wilson, Buchanan, Frucci, plus contributing editors Fallon, Loftus and Hermann, and, to round it out, intern Andi.

And if you don’t quite get the whole Twitter thing… well, you’re missing out, that’s all I’m saying.