Isaiah's Tech

Today's the day. If you're looking to get a Windows Phone 7 handset on Telus then today would be the best day to do so. If you purchase a Windows Phone 7 handset from Telus today (until December 19th) they'll throw in a free Xbox 360. Of course, it's going to be the new 4GB model (the cheapest model) and you will be tied down to a 3-year contract. So, it's your choice now, will it be the HTC 7 Surround or the LG Optimus 7.

[TNW]

As expected, Telus has released their two Windows Phone 7 smartphones. Telus in Canada has joined the Windows Phone 7 party by releasing the HTC Surround and the LG (E900) Optimus 7 for $99.99 on a 3-year contract. The Surround packs a slide-out speaker and is also available for $449.99 contract-free, while the Optimus 7 sports a slide-out QWERTY keyboard which would definitely get used a bit more. It's also going for $499.99 contract-free. Check them out on Telus (here and here, respectively)

[Telus]

If you're willing to purchase a Windows Phone 7 handset right now then you can find the Samsung Focus and the HTC Surround on AT&T's website (here and here, respectively). Both of these handsets pack some pretty great spec sheets and are available right now for $199.99 on 2-year contracts. The Focus packs a 4-inch Super AMOLED touchscreen display, a 5MP AF camera with 720p HD video recording capabilities, 8GB of internal storage, a 1GHz Snapdragon CPU, and WiFi b/g/n / Bluetooth 2.1 / GPS support. The Surround, on the other hand, features a 3.8-inch touchscreen display, 16GB of internal storage, WiFi b/g/n / Bluetooth 2.1 support, a 5MP AF camera with an LED flash and 720p HD video recording capabilities, and a a slide-out speaker.

[WP Central]

Telus has just confirmed that they'll be launching their first two Windows Phone 7 smartphones on November 8th. The handsets I'm talking about are the HTC 7 Surround (pictured above) and the LG (E900) Optimus 7. Both of these handsets will be available for just $99 on a 3-year contract (promo price). In case you forgot, the HTC model has a slide-out speaker while the LG one features a slide-out QWERTY keyboard instead. This is definitely worth it and it's definitely a competitor to RIM and the cheap Android handsets that the carrier has. Check out the official announcement from Telus.

[Mobile Syrup]

Microsoft is holding their event as I type this and two carriers in Canada have just announced that they'll be getting their share of Windows Phone 7 devices. First up is Telus who announced that they'll be getting the HTC 7 Surround. This smartphone features a 3.8-inch touchscreen display, 16GB of internal storage, a 1GHz CPU, Bluetooth / WiFi support, 512MB of ROM, a 576MB of RAM, and a slide-out speaker with Dolby Mobile and SRS WOW HD audio quality. And apparently, this will be available in late October - a bit before the US release! This is pretty awesome, and you can scroll down for what Rogers will be getting.

Just announced is that Rogers will be getting the Samsung Focus. This smartphone features a 4-inch Super AMOLED touchscreen display, a 1GHz Snapdragon CPU, 8GB of internal storage, a microSD card slot, and a 5MP AF camera that can record 720p HD video recording. This will likely be available for $199.99 on a 3-year contract but pricing isn't official yet - release date is unknown as well. I think Rogers chose the better smartphone here. Where's Bell in all this?

Telus Releasing the HTC 7 Surround: Mobile Syrup
Rogers Getting the Samsung Focus: Mobile Syrup

Let the leaks continue! Thanks to AT&T (here) we now have the official names for a few more Windows Phone 7 handsets. The first one is the i916 / i917 Cetus which will be hitting the carrier as the Samsung Focus. Of course, we already found this out two days ago so this one shouldn't be surprising. The one pictured above appears to be the T8788 which will be launching as the HTC Surround. Last, but not least, there's the LG Quantum which you may know as the C900. All of these smartphones should pack a great spec sheet so you really can't go wrong with any of these.

Update: According to Gizmodo, the specs for the HTC Surround have just leaked out. This smartphone features a 3.8-inch WVGA touchscreen display, 16GB of internal storage (made official on-stage), a 1GHz CPU, 512MB of ROM, 576MB of RAM, Bluetooth 2.1 / WiFi support, a 5MP camera with an LED flash and 720p HD video recording, a kickstand, and a 1,230mAh battery. Oh yes, don't forget that this smartphone also features a slide-out speaker which has Dolby Mobile and SRS WOW HD audio quality, which sounds great. This will be available for $199 as well.

Update: On stage, some AT&T rep said that the LG Quantum features a 3.5-inch touchscreen display, a slide-out QWERTY, 16GB of internal storage, and a 1GHz Snapdragon CPU. The Focus features a 4-inch Super AMOLED display, a 1GHz Snapdragon, 8GB of internal storage, a 5MP camera, and a 9.9mm thin body (the thinnest WP7 handset). Both of these smartphones will be available for $199 on a 2-year contract. The Focus will be available on November 8th and the other two handsets will be available "a few weeks after".

[Engadget]

A couple of weeks ago we heard that AT&T in the US were testing two Windows Phone 7 devices. One was the LG C900 and the other one has leaked out today in another Engadget exclusive, the HTC T8788. Specs are unknown right now, but what we know is that it has a touchscreen display along with three touch-sensitive buttons. Unfortunately, HTC decided not to go with a slide-out QWERTY keyboard on this one. What you see slid out is actually an external speaker - and there's even a kickstand on the back. Looks like they really are trying to make these devices "unique." Oh well.

[Engadget]

Two more Windows Phone 7 handsets have apparently leaked out. The first one is the LG C900 which was actually spotted in the XML on LG's own website. This was just spotted on DSLReports mobile speed testing site (here) as well but, of course, the specs are unknown right now. The other handset that was also spotted on DSLReports is the HTC T8788. Both of these phones are reportedly being tested by AT&T right now. AT&T being the "premier carrier" of Windows Phone 7 handsets could have a bunch of them by the end of the year.

[WMPowerUser]