Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and Galaxy Gear UK pricing revealed

Samsung has revealed the pricing of the recently launched Galaxy Note 3 and the Galaxy Gear smart watch for the UK market.

The Samsung Galaxy Note 3 comes with a price tag of 649 UK Pounds (Rs. 66,270 approximately) which is the price for the unlocked version of the handset while the Galaxy Gear smart watch has been priced for 299 UK Pounds (Rs. 30,530 approximately). Both the devices will be rolled out on September 25 for the UK markets.

Last week, AT&T started taking pre-orders for the Galaxy Note 3 for $299.99 with a two-year contract and the telecom operator noted that the device will ship around October 1. AT&T's contract pricing of the Galaxy Note 3 translates into an off-contract pricing of approximately $700 (Rs. 46,000 approximately). However, Samsung's Galaxy Gear smart watch was listed as expected in the 'coming weeks'.

The Samsung Galaxy Note 3 was officially unveiled alongside the Galaxy Gear smart watch at an event in Berlin at IFA 2013. However, the company did not reveal the prices of the device but announced that the latest phablet will head to around 140 countries later this month.

The Samsung Galaxy Note 3 comes with a 5.7-inch full-HD Super AMOLED display. It comes in two variants: the LTE-variant will be powered by 2.3GHz quad-core Snapdragon 800 processor, and the 3G (HSDPA) version will be powered by a 1.9GHz octa-core Exynos processor. Both models bear 3GB of LPDDR3 RAM, and sport a 13-megapixel rear camera alongside a 2-megapixel front camera. The Note 3 is powered by 3,200mAh battery and runs on Android 4.3 Jelly Bean.

Meanwhile, the Galaxy Gear smart watch features a 1.63-inch (4.14-cm) OLED display. It can make calls, display messages, record videos and snap photos with its 1.9-megapixel camera.

PS Vita 2000 goes lighter and slimmer

Sony Computer Entertainment has announced an update to the PS Vita handheld console.

Called the PS Vita 2000, it will be 20 percent lighter and 15 percent thinner than the current console and comes with 1GB of onboard storage. Sony says the new Vita will launch in Japan on October 10 at a retail price of 18,980 yen (US$190). It will come in six color options. The current Vita now retails for S$399 (US$312).

At the Sony press conference today in Tokyo, the company also announced that it will be launching a 64GB memory card for Vita as well as several new games including God Eater 2, Gundam Breaker, Final Fantasy 10 and Phantasy Star Nova. There will also be limited-edition bundles of the Vita with some of the upcoming games. Sony expects about 100 Vita titles by the end of the year.

How to create a Windows 8 USB recovery drive

A bootable Windows 8 recovery drive can help you repair or restore your PC if and when problems arise. Though you can create a recovery DVD, USB flash drives are much more convenient and are fairly inexpensive.

Here's how to create a Windows 8 USB recovery drive for your PC:

Step 1: From the Windows 8 Start screen, type "recovery," then choose Settings to see the search results under Settings. Select "Create a recovery drive" to begin the recovery drive tool.

Step 2: When the recovery drive tool appears, check the box next to "Copy the recovery partition from the PC to the recovery drive" if you want the recovery tools that came with your PC to be included in the recovery drive. If the selection is grayed out, that means your PC doesn't have a recovery partition. Keep in mind that if you do copy the recovery partition, you'll need at least a 16GB USB flash drive. Without it, you can make do with just 256MB. Click Next to continue.

Step 3: Make sure that the USB flash drive you're using is empty and that it shows up in the list of available drives. Any data left on the flash drive will be deleted by the recovery drive tool. When you get to the end of the wizard, click the Create button and wait a couple of minutes for the drive to be created.

That's it. Now you can boot the Windows 8 USB recovery drive and perform a refresh, reset, system restore, system image recovery, and an automatic repair.

Migrate data from your old Android device to the Moto X

Upgrading from an older, slower, not nearly as good-looking Android device to a newer, faster, better-looking Moto X isn't a bad decision. Often the only drawback to changing devices is the process of transferring important information such as text messages and call logs to the new device.

Fortunately for Moto X owners who are coming from another Android device, the process is as simple as downloading an app and tapping on a couple of buttons.

To begin migrating your data to the Moto X, you'll first need to install Motorola's Migrate on your old device. It's available to download in the Play store.

Once you have Migrate installed, launch the Migrate app on your Moto X and pair the two devices. You'll do this by scanning a QR code on your Moto X with your old phone. Both devices will have to be on the same Wi-Fi network in order to communicate.

After the two devices are paired, the sync process will begin. You can expect your text messages, call history, SIM contacts, Media, and finally the volume & brightness settings to be transferred.

The time it takes to transfer your data depends on the amount of data you have on your old phone. You'll be able to use both devices while the transfer takes place. There will be a progress indicator in the notification tray to keep you up-to-date.

After the transfer finishes, you'll find your information on the Moto X just as it was on your old phone.

LG taking OLED and 4K TVs mainstream next year

LG has unveiled a grand plan to dethrone Samsung as king of televisions. The Korean company is aiming for mass-market releases for its range of OLED and 4K UHDTV sets across the globe next year. Despite launching its OLED and 4K Ultra-high definition televisions in a few key markets already, LG hasn't sold the sets in volumes. That's thanks in part to their high cost when compared to regular televisions, but it's also because the sets aren't available in many markets. That'll change soon, says LG, as 2014 will see the company push 4K and OLED towards the mainstream. To achieve that, it's accelerating its launch plans in many markets, and claims premium and economy versions of its next-generation hardware will be available in 50 countries by the end of next year.

At IFA last week, LG announced a brand-new TV that's unlikely to help with worldwide marketshare, but is nonetheless impressive. The uninspiringly named 77-inch Ultra HD OLED TV is important for a number of reasons. It's currently the world's largest OLED display, and it's also the first 4K OLED from LG. Although it hasn't committed to releasing the 77-inch set in its current state, LG does say that it'll launch televisions with its "Ultra HD OLED technology" next year.

LG's final weapon against Samsung is software. The company bought webOS earlier this year, and is hard at work developing the failed mobile operating system for use in its TVs. The company has previously said that webOS will be ready for retail next year, which falls in line nicely with its plans to push high-end televisions out to the masses.