Windows Phone 8 is now so close, we can almost taste it (and considering how excited some are getting about it, we wouldn’t be surprised to see certain people doing exactly that when it arrives). The recent leak of the Windows Phone 8 software development kit (SDK) has only served to whet our appetites even more here at Neowin, but what we really crave is a look at some of the hardware that will accompany the launch of the OS in the weeks ahead.
Our very first official taste of Windows Phone 8 hardware is likely to come at the joint Nokia-Microsoft media event on September 5 in New York, and while Nokia’s next-generation Windows Phones are likely to be nothing short of sensational, we’re no less excited about what Microsoft’s other hardware partners - including HTC, Huawei and Samsung - will bring to the table.
For the last few weeks, rumours have persisted of two Samsung Windows Phone 8 handsets arriving before the end of the year. A tipster contacted SamMobile claiming to have information on these two new devices, although the identity and source of the details remains undisclosed. The information appears to elaborate on details leaked at the end of July, revealing two handsets, codenamed ‘Marco’ and ‘Odyssey’, but should nonetheless be taken with a shovelful of salt.
Both devices are said to feature 1.5GHz dual-core MSM8960 Snapdragon S4 processors. Marco (model number GT-I8370) is said to be the ‘mid-end’ device, priced between €350-€450 EUR ($430-$550 USD / £275-£350). It will reportedly feature a 4.0” WVGA (480x800) Super AMOLED display, with 5MP rear/1.9MP front cameras, 8GB of onboard storage and a microSD expansion slot.
Odyssey (GT-I8750) is the ‘high-end’ device, with a huge 4.8” HD (720x1280px or 768x1280px) Super AMOLED display, 8MP/1.9MP cameras and a selection of either 16GB or 32GB integrated storage, again with microSD expansion. The price is said to be under €600 ($740 / £470).
The July leak suggested that both devices would be 4G LTE capable, and would arrive in Q4 this year, but appeared to indicate that only Odyssey would include NFC support, an essential component for the new Windows Phone 8 ‘Wallet Hub’.
Source: SamMobile