The latest iteration of the Microsoft mobile operating system is Windows Phone 8 and the bevy of smartphones running this version of the OS was announced back in September. The list of these new handsets include the Nokia Lumia 920 and the HTC Windows Phone 8X but did you know that even before these devices were introduced to the smartphone-buying population in US shores, Samsung already beat everybody to the punch when it unveiled the Samsung ATIV S back in August?
By default, this made the Samsung flagship device for the Windows Phone ecosystem the first handset to be publicly announced for the Windows Phone 8 but sad to say, the Samsung ATIV S is still nowhere to be found of this writing. There was a passing mention of the handset during that Microsoft event in New York City a couple of months back but until now, we still haven’t hear any details about the smartphone except for the fact that it has already been delayed a couple of times now.
However, those who are still waiting patiently to get their hands on the Samsung ATIV S might be able to get their shot at the handset very soon if recent rumors pan out. According to our source, dummy units of the Samsung ATIV S have started arriving in brick and mortar retail locations of Bell in Canadian territories north of the border which means that the real deal is soon to follow.
No confirmation coming from Bell, Microsoft or Samsung has made it to the news so far but here’s to hoping that these rumors pan out so that those waiting for the Samsung ATIV S to finally make its debut in the shelves will finally get their chance to play with the handset. In US shores however, Verizon is said to be preparing to launch the Samsung Odyssey, a variant of the Samsung ATIV S, but no specific date has been nailed so far. Word on the street however point to Big Red launching the handset before the year is out.
As mentioned earlier, Samsung unveiled the Samsung ATIV S as early as August and the handset is said to be a version of the Samsung Galaxy S III designed specifically for the Windows Phone platform. It has measurements of 137.2 x 70.5 x 8.7 mm and it tips the scales at 135 grams. Under the hood, the circuitry of the Samsung ATIV S is built around its QualComm MSM8960 SnapDragon chipset and this SoC brings into play a dual-core 1.5G GHz Krait processor and a full gigabyte of RAM. The handset will be made available in a 16GB and 32GB version in terms of storage space with the option to have its internal memory expanded using its microSD card slot. Display-wise, the Samsung ATIV S sports a 4.8-inch SuperAMOLED HD panel with a resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels while its camera department is composed of a rear 8MP shooter and a front 1.9MP video call and self-portrait snapper.
