Big news tonight for the Windows Phone platform and its fans, as several reports have surfaced claiming that Windows Phone 8 has hit the release to manufacturing (RTM) stage, just like we'd heard it would. Sources speaking to both WPCentral and ZDNet say that Microsoft has finished work on Windows Phone 8 and pushed it to their manufacturing partners, which will allow them to test the OS out on their hardware and help Microsoft work out any final bugs that may be present. Along with these reports of Windows Phone 8 hitting the RTM stage, images purportedly showing the Windows Phone team signing a large "Windows Phone 8 Apollo RTM" banner have been posted online.
Hitting the RTM stage is a big milestone for a piece of software, and now that Windows Phone 8 has RTM'd, it's one step closer to appearing on handsets in our pockets. There's still no official word on exactly when we'll see the first Windows Phone 8 devices hit store shelves, but the rumor mill recently claimed that Microsoft is planning a launch event in late October, with the actual release of phones to follow shortly thereafter. We've also heard that the Nokia Lumia 920 may be hitting AT&T on November 2. For now we'll have to wait for Microsoft and its manufacturers to put the finishing touches on Windows Phone 8 and continue to check our inboxes for any official word on a launch. Now that we've gotten a look at some of the initial Windows Phone 8 hardware, how many of you are planning on checking out one of the devices once they launch?
Via Engadget, WPCentral, ZDNet, WMPowerUser, LiveSino.net
