There have been a plethora of leaks featuring Windows Phone 7 handsets over the past couple of months, but we're still missing one critical piece of information: when is the OS itself going to launch?  If a new rumors is right, we're just about a month away from seeing Microsoft's new OS hit the streets.  According to Pocket-Lint, "multiples sources familiar with the matter" have said that Windows Phone 7 will be released on October 11.  Those sources, who Pocket-Lint says are "senior figures within the industry," also said that phones running WP7 would be publicly available later in October.

It was only a little over a week ago that Microsoft announced that Windows Phone 7 had reached gold master status, so an October launch seems plausible.  If handsets running WP7 came out near the end of October, that would also line up nicely with the beginning of the big shopping season and give users a chance to get some hands-on time with Microsoft's new OS before they craft their holiday wish lists.  I don't know about you, but along with the G2, a new TV, and my own flying reindeer, a shiny new Windows Phone 7 handset is at the top of my wish list.

Via Pocket-Lint