Windows Phone 7 Due Oct. 7

As the smartphone market grows dramatically, industry observers are keen to see how Windows Phone 7 competes with the iPhone and Android units. The upcoming WIndows Phone release will be watched with great interest.

As the launch date for Windows Phone 7 approaches, the tech media have been working overtime, trying to pin down the date for the launch gala and also the date that phones built on the operating system will hit store shelves.

Now, a report in the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) says its sources have given it the real dates. Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT), the WSJ said Thursday, plans to launch the phones on Oct. 11, as the predominant rumors had been predicting for weeks.

The location, New York, that pundits had been predicting was also reinforced by the WSJ piece, along with satellite link-ups to other major cities worldwide.

Additionally, the paper said, Windows Phone 7 smartphones are slated for commercial availability the week of Nov. 8.

That date, however, is the real date for the launch gala, according to Paul Thurrott, an industry insider and author of a forthcoming book about Windows Phone 7, who posted on the topic at his Windows Phone Secrets blog.

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