The smartphone is likely to be announced in early April at BUILD 2014

Mar 25, 2014 13:31 GMT  ·  By

Nokia is the absolute ruler of the Windows Phone market and there aren’t any contenders that could put up a fight. 90% of the Windows Phone handsets available on the market are probably produced by Nokia, but that is likely to change.

Since Nokia’s device division will be acquired by Microsoft next month and lots of other handset makers have announced that they will start releasing new devices once Windows Phone 8.1 gets released, the competition on the Windows Phone market will be fierce in some countries.

Indian OEMs like Karbonn, Xolo and Micromax have already confirmed that they will launch Windows Phone handsets in India, which will certainly be priced aggressively.

In well-developed countries, Nokia will face Samsung as the new challenger on Windows Phone market, though the South Korean company still has a long way to go to become a real threat for Nokia.

We have reported a few times before that Samsung plans to launch a new Windows Phone smartphone, which will be available for purchase in the United States initially.

Samsung ATIV SE is the spiritual successor to the ATIV smartphone and will be launched in the United States through major carrier Verizon Wireless.

There are also press images of the ATIV SE leaked online, so there’s no doubt that the smartphone exists and will go on sale at Verizon (it comes with the carrier’s branding).

Well, it appears that the folks over at WPCentral have been able to learn more about the smartphone’s availability and price tag at Verizon.

According to them, Samsung ATIV SE will be officially introduced at Verizon on April 18 and customers will be able to purchase it for around $600 (€435) outright.

Customers that can’t afford to pay the full price for the device will be able to get it for only $200 (€145) on two-year agreements, if we are to believe the latest rumors.

It’s unclear whether or not Verizon customers will be able to pre-order the Samsung ATIV SE before the smartphone hits shelves.

If the device is unveiled in early April at BUILD 2014 press conference as one of the first smartphones to ship with Windows Phone 8.1 onboard, there’s likely to be a pre-order period, otherwise Verizon may just have to go ahead with the sales of the phone beginning on April 18.

Still, there’s a slim chance that Microsoft will show a Samsung smartphone at its BUILD 2014 conference, even if that device is powered by its own Windows Phone platform. Stay tuned for more on this one.