MS Turtle phone said a Verizon exclusive

Microsoft's Project Pink phones are getting closer to release, a marketing material leak appears to have confirmed today. The documents show the Turtle slider and suggest it would be advertised for Verizon under the command to "make your network more social." Gizmodo understands that Verizon could not only be a launch partner for Microsoft but that it may even have an exclusive in the US.

Other clues suggest that the phone wouldn't use Windows Phone 7 and might instead use its own customized OS. Prior leaks have mentioned a "Premium Mobile Experience" attached to the phone, but what that would involve has to date never been revealed. The Pure, a more conventional slider phone, isn't found in any of the documents and may be intended for other carriers.

The contents are believed to be just days old and hint at Microsoft being in the last stages before a more official announcement. Rumors have appeared suggesting Microsoft may use the CTIA expo late this month to unveil the phones and the platform they run on, but without pricing or release dates it's not clear if the Turtle or Pure would be available soon after the Las Vegas phone expo.

Both of the Project Pink phones are expected to be spiritual successors to the Sidekick that center on a younger, messaging-focused audience but which run an official Microsoft platform and have that company's direct influence on a final design actually manufactured by Sharp.

By Electronista Staff