There is a rumour suggesting that Microsoft’s Windows Phone 8 software will make an appearance on 29^th October.

While reports about its launch are unconfirmed, many analysts believe this is highly probable. Microsoft has for some time now been intimating that it is releasing a new version, which it hopes will compete more effectively with Android and Apple’s iOS operating system.

The rumour may also be correct for another reason: it is also believed that Microsoft is releasing the tablet version of the platform a few days before, on 25^th October.

If true, again analysts are not surprised. It is the same strategy the software giant used when it announced the new platform last June.

On hearing this news, experts got rather excited. One suggested that the next few months are going to be manic. He was, of course, referring to the fact that Apple is expected to launch the iPhone 5 and iPad Mini this autumn, among the unveiling of a number of new handsets from the likes of Nokia, HTC and Huawei.

Nokia’s smartphone launch is possibly the most interesting, as the devices are expected to be Windows Phone 8 handsets.

In associated news, Samsung is getting in on the WP8 act. It has announced the creation of its first smartphone to run the latest version of the operating system. In fact, Samsung’s new WP8 series – the Ativ – is said to have beaten Nokia in getting off the ground.

Nokia is not announcing its own products until September.