Why You Can Trust CNET Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and Gear watch on sale 3 October
Australians will be able to pre-order both Samsung's smart watch and the new large-screen phone from 3pm AEST, 18 September.
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Samsung's Galaxy Note 3 and the Galaxy Gear smart watch will go on sale on 3 October in Australia, with pre-orders starting from 3pm AEST today, 18 September.
The 5.7-inch Note 3 will be available outright for AU$999, with carrier pricing plans yet to be announced. Samsung has confirmed that the phone will be available on all operators. The Galaxy Gear smart watch will cost AU$369.
The Note 3 has improved functionality for the S Pen, with easier access to pen-based apps and functions, along with an increased emphasis on multitasking. You can read our detailed hands-on preview of the device here.
In Australia, the Note 3 will come in black, white and pink. You'll be able to get it from telco stores, Samsung Experience stores and "select retailers".
The Galaxy Gear smart watch works as a companion device for Galaxy phones via Bluetooth, although initially it will only pair with the Note 3. Tyler McGee, Samsung Australia's vice president of telecommunications, told CNET Australia that updates would be available "before Christmas" that would allow the watch to pair with Galaxy S3, S4 and Note 2.
The Gear has a 1.63-inch, 320x320-pixel super AMOLED screen surrounded by a metal frame and comes with a 1.9-megapixel camera embedded into the band. A phone app called Gear Manager is used to control the settings on your Gear, from the style of watch face, right through to installed apps and more.
The Gear allows you get notifications from your phone, as well as answer calls, control music and more. The watch also has its own camera (with video recording) and at launch will have 60 plus apps available for it. Videos and photos taken with the gear are automatically sent to your paired phone, with the last 50 of each also available on the watch itself.
McGee showed off some of the features on the Gear, such as a built-in "find my phone" feature (which causes your Galaxy phone to play music) and an auto lock that will lock a phone when the Gear is more than 1.5m away. A similar function can be set up to alert you if you're walking away without your phone, and your phone can conversely be used to find your smart watch as well.
Battery life for the Gear is apparently roughly a day, with a dedicated charging dock to charge the Gear. It will be available in black, grey, beige, rose gold, green and orange. At the moment, Samsung Australia has no plans to sell the Gear as a bundle with the Note 3, but McGee noted that he couldn't comment on whether carriers might choose to bundle or not.
We'll have full reviews on both devices as review units become available.
