With the Lumia 920 and HTC 8X already available for pre-order from AT&T, the real question at Microsoft's big Windows Phone 8 event today was what the company had in store for the other major carriers. For Verizon and T-Mobile, the answer turned out to be "some pretty good stuff!" while Sprint customers were SOL. The third-place carrier was shut out from the platform entirely.
First off, what the two additional carriers don't have: Nokia's Lumia 920. One of the most full-featured, and most exciting, new Windows Phones will remain an AT&T exclusive.
Verizon: The nation's largest carrier will offer two Windows Phone 8 devices by Thanksgiving and another in December. First up are HTC's previously announced 8X and a Nokia exclusive in the Lumia 822. The 822 is a variant of the 820 with 16 GB of storage and what looks like a slightly thicker and rounder body. The phone features the same 4.3 inch display, 8 mp camera, 1.5 ghz dual-core processor and 4G LTE support as the 820.
In December, Verizon will also begin selling Samsung's only Windows Phone 8 launch device, the ATIV Odyssey. The Odyssey hasn't been fully unveiled yet but is said to have a 4.65 inch display and dual core snapdragon processor.
The 16GB HTC 8X will retail for $199 and the Lumia 822 will go for the surprisingly cheap $99 on Verizon. Pricing hasn't yet been announced for the ATIV.
T-Mobile: T-Mobile will also get the HTC 8X in addition to a Lumia exclusive of its own, the previously announced 810. The Lumia 810 features a design that's distinct from both the 820 and 822 (it's blockier), but has essentally the same internals. 4.3-inch display, 8 mp camera, 1.5ghz dual-core processor. Both the 8X and the Lumia 810 will be on sale November 14 from T-Mobile for $149 and $99 respectively.
[via Microsoft]
