Windows Phone 7 to Be Launched Today

  It's been a long wait, but the launch day has finally arrived. Today, Redmond-based software giant Microsoft is expected to officially launch its latest mobile operating system, Windows Phone 7, and to announce when the first handsets running under it would land on shelves.

Last year this time, the company brought to shelves another OS version, Windows Mobile 6.5, which later became Windows Phone 6.5, and which was nothing more than a version upgrade for the older Windows Mobile 6.1.

Unlike 6.5, Windows Phone 7, which was unveiled officially back in February during the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, brings a breath of fresh air to Microsoft's mobile offering, which lost ground lately in front of more powerful rivals like Android, BlackBerry or iOS.

With the new OS version, users would get a brand new experience from their Windows Phones, including a new user interface, redesigned menus, better integration with social networking, a new Marketplace, and more.

The new Windows Phone 7 is said to be revolutionary and, when compared to the previous versions of the platform, it cannot be seen differently, that's for sure.

However, the main attraction of the day won't be the mobile operating system in itself, but the mobile phones running under it, which should go official today, as well as the exact shipping dates for various markets around the world.

Rumors on Windows Phone 7 devices have started to emerge ever since a few months ago, and handsets like HTC HD7, HTC Trophy, Samsung Cedar, HTC Mondrian, LG E900, LG C900, and many others made it to the headlines quite a few times before.

As far as rumor goes, today's announcement should unveil the fact that Windows Phone 7 handsets are set to land on the European market starting with October 21st, while US users would receive them beginning with November 8th.

However, it remains to be seen which carriers would launch Windows Phone 7 devices first, as well as what devices would land on shelves before the end of the ongoing year.

The launch event should take place today, October 11th, at 9:30 a.m. ET, in New York, (02:30PM, London), where Steve Ballmer, Microsoft's CEO, would announce officially the upcoming release of Windows Phone 7 handsets in the US.

We'll keep an eye on the news surrounding the Windows Phone 7 launch, so check with us again lately today to learn more on what Microsoft has to unveil to the world.