The Galaxy Note 3 is region locked in Europe, US
Reports suggest that the Samsung Note 3 is region locked in some markets. Samsung has confirmed Australian models are not affected.
Samsung appears to have made the unusual step of region locking some models of the Note 3, if online reports turn out to be accurate.
It appears that in some markets, such as Europe and North America, the Note 3 will only accept SIM cards from that region.
This prohibits the user from being able to purchase a local SIM while travelling internationally and use it in the Note 3.
CNET Australia contacted local Samsung representatives regarding whether the SIM lock would be in effect locally and were given the following comment: "Genuine Australian variants of the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 are not affected by any region SIM card locking".
We still have no direct confirmation about the region locking in Europe and US, but it seems that Australians who shop via so-called 'grey importers' should check model numbers and region of origin before buying.
Updated at 7.20 AEST, 28 September: added comment from Samsung Australia.