LG should have a phone running Windows Mobile 7 as early as September, based on a premature slip. The company at its Design Lab reportedly told those gathered, including French site Presse-Citron, that it will use the new Microsoft OS on a phone that would reach the US first and then Europe later. The post has since been deleted but as of this writing was still available through a Google cache.
The same tip also had an Android 2.1 phone arriving in April, presumably with a similar launch pattern. It’s unlikely this will be the Europe-first GT540, but what would come in its place isn’t clear.
A September release would not only debunk rumors that Windows Mobile 7 might be delayed to 2011 but would support beliefs that Microsoft is still on track to show the new OS at Mobile World Congress in February. September availability would hinge on Microsoft shipping the OS to manufacturers in spring and giving them enough time to integrate the software into production phones. The developer often prefers to show a new OS in public at least once before it’s complete and has regularly used Mobile World Congress as the venue for these unveilings.
