Official images of Windows Phone 8 handset Huawei Ascend W1 leaked online

Every smartphone manufacturer’s worst nightmare @Evleaks is back, and this time around the leaks is one of the phones from Huawei’s line-up. On the tipster’s Twitter page, photos of the Huawei Ascend W1 running on Windows Phone 8 have surfaced.

There had been images of the handset that were captured in the past, but they do not match up to these high quality shots that have been leaked by @Evleaks. From the images we can see that the handset shares a fair amount of similarities with other Windows Phone 8 smartphones from Nokia and HTC as the Cyan colour found here is synonymous with that of the Nokia range of Lumia devices. Another major similarity between this handset is the camera housing at the back, which is strikingly similar to that of the HTC One X.

A look at Huawei’s upcoming handset

However, Huawei have been reinventing its image. This year, the brand has launched a range of Android smartphones that can compete with the best in the business. It now appears that it is stepping into Windows Phone 8 territory, and aiming to make a name for itself, and compete with the likes of Samsung, Nokia, and HTC who are all poised to launch WP8 handsets in the near future.

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As for the specifications, the W1 sports a 4-inch WVGA display, 5-megapixel rear camera, VGA front-facing camera, a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, 512MB RAM, 4GB internal memory, and a 2,000mAh battery. Visually, the phone bears a resemblance to HTC’s Windows Phone 8X, the specifications point to it being closer to the mid-end 8S.

Huawei for its part has announced it is expanding its relationship with Microsoft Corp for the creation of the brand’s first Windows Phone handset. Part of the Huawei Ascend family, the Ascend with Windows Phone 8 expands the company’s smartphone portfolio and aims to bring the Windows Phone operating system to an even bigger audience.

“2012 is building up to be a great year for Huawei. Now, we are poised to end the year with a big bang – with the introduction of our first smartphone running on the Windows Phone platform. We’re very excited about this relationship with Microsoft which will enable us to provide our customers with a bigger array of Huawei smartphone choices,” says Shao Yang, chief marketing officer, Huawei Device.

“It’s great to welcome Huawei to the Windows Phone family. The only phone with Live Tiles, Windows Phone brings you closest to the people and things you care most about,” said Terry Myerson, Corporate Vice President of the Windows Phone Division at Microsoft. “With Huawei’s impressive global capabilities, together we can bring Windows Phone 8 to more people around the world.”

The Huawei Ascend with Windows Phone 8 is expected to be available in Europe, China, and the United States, with other markets to follow. It will be marketed through a series of promotional activities in conjunction with key mobile operators around the world.