The 7 Things You Cared About Most in 2021

The 7 Things You Cared About Most in 2021

I don’t need to tell you how trash 2021 was. Here at Gizmodo Australia, we’ve been desperately trying to find what was good, and it proved to be as difficult as you’d expect. This time, however, we’re leaving this list up to you, our readers.

Here’s the seven things you cared about most in 2021.

Where to find a darn PS5

Image: Sony

Sony’s PlayStation 5 actually dropped in November 2020. Since then, it’s been difficult as hell to get our hands on one. A friend of mine paid $1,000 to a scalper for one, which I don’t advise (like, at all). There’s been tragedies involving the PS5, both here and abroad, as gamers have spent over a year scrambling for a chance to get their hands on one.

Why are they so hard to find? The continued semiconductor shortage, mostly. There isn’t really any industry that hasn’t been affected.

We’ve had a post running on our site that updates stock in Australia the moment we find anything out there. We will continue to update it, until such time as you all have a PS5 in your possession.

Things that were out of this world

Image: file photo

2021 was a good year for space (and 2022 is meant to be even better).

This year, you were keen to walk outside and look up to the sky for a bit of a break from lockdown life.

In April, we saw the pink super moon, there was then the super blood moon in May and an almost total lunar eclipse in November.

But there was also a quick guide to seeing the International Space Station from Australia that a bunch of you keep returning to in order to see the ISS as it passes our view.

Viewing space from the comfort of our laptop also helped us through 2021. From watching billionaires send dick-shaped rockets into space (Jeff Bezos and Blue Origin, in case that wasn’t clear), as well as Elon Musk and his side hustle SpaceX, you were all keen to know when these things were kicking off.

Elon Musk

Photo: Britta Pedersen-Pool, Getty Images
Image: Britta Pedersen-Pool, Getty Images

While we’re on the topic of Elon Musk, it’s a nice segue into, well, Elon Musk.

Whether you love him or you hate him, you care about what he does. Mostly, however, you cared about if SpaceX was in fact plummeting into bankruptcy.

He tweeted a lot (I mean, a lot) and he probably should have walked away from his phone, Grimes declared him the ‘greatest gamer’ in a song and he called for an end to U.S. government subsidies (the ones that helped him get rich).

Honestly, 2021 in the life of Elon Musk could be an entire ass post on its own. But locally speaking, you were all curious how much Musk’s Starlink internet would cost in Australia.

Oh, and how to watch him on SNL, for some reason.

All things NBN & telco

broadband tax nbn regional broadband scheme
Image: Getty

Whether it was Aussie Broadband raising its NBN speeds, Telstra launching a 5G home internet service or the heads of Aussie Broadband and Telstra going at it on the internet, 2021 was a big year for the telco scene in Australia.

You cared about the status of 5G reception in Australia (rightfully so) and were curious what OptiComm internet was.

You were also keen to nab some pretty sweet telco deals and NBN alternatives, thanks to Alex’s weekly column.

We’re excited to see what the country’s largest players – Telstra, TPG Telecom, Optus – will get up to next year, and just as curious to see how this whole NBN thing continues to divide.

Movie delays

big movies releasing 2021
Image: Legendary Pictures

Long ago, Australia had a massive problem with piracy. In fact, we led the charge for pirating TV shows like Game of ThronesSince local streaming services made television series and films more accessible, this problem has lessened — but Australia kinda sorta entered a new phase of piracy this year as cinemas started to re-open after lockdowns – because some movies were delayed in Australia while the rest of the world got to see them.

This year you kept searching for when Dune was going to be released, likewise Venom, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and Daniel Craig’s last go in No Time To Die.

We’ve already got a running list of all the sci-fi, horror, adventure and fantasy flicks hitting cinemas in 2022, if you’re curious what will be making its way to the big screen next year.

Caravans

ACCC caravan
Image: Happy Camper

This one is a topic that comes up a lot in the Gizmodo Australia newsroom. We think caravan/RV conversions are super cool and it turns out you do too.

From inflatable offices popping out the top of RVs to absolute luxury on wheels, you are all either hiding a stash of money somewhere to go scooping up these mobile homes usually reserved for Grey Nomads or you just like looking at the epic stuff other people are doing with them. Either way, we love to see something turn into something it was never intended to be. But also CARAVANS THAT FLOAT.

You also were interested to see that our watchdog is, um, watching. The ACCC has had tech giants in its sights for the last few years and is now looking into the caravan/RV industry. This is definitely one we’re going to be watching unfold in 2022.

The iPhone 13 and Google Pixel 6

top tech 2021
Image: Google/Apple

2021 was a good year for phones.

Apple had us up at 3am (on my second day of being Editor for Gizmodo Australia, actually) and it was worth it. California Streaming brought us the goods. Tim Cook gave us two new iPads but he also dropped the iPhone 13 mini, iPhone 13, iPhone 13 Pro and the iPhone 13 Pro Max. I told you there was no need to drop the cash on a Pro if ya didn’t want, because the iPhone 13 was rad, but I also told you the Pros were absolutely kick ass. Zac, meanwhile, declared small phones trumped all (I do not agree, but alas).

Google also brought the goods. Honestly, the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro are kickass. Even Telstra thinks so.

I’ve struggled to decide whether I like the Google Pixel 6 Pro or iPhone 13 Pro Max better, it’s like choosing my favourite child. It seems many of you are in the same boat as you cared about content regarding both of these phones.

There were other phones that dropped in 2021, but the two big ones were (not surprisingly) your favourites.


And there you have it. It’s been a tiring year and we all need a break, so I hope you’re getting a bit of R&R in over the holiday season. Thanks for your support this year, it means so much to us.

Here’s hoping 2022 is better, we’ll see you there.

Happy New Year from the team at Gizmodo Australia.


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