Samsung ATIV S Delayed Until February 2013?

The Samsung ATIV S won’t arrive in Europe until February 2013 according to a SamMobile report.

Microsoft originally announced the Samsung ATIV S as one of the first Windows Phone 8 devices to come out in Europe, but now it won’t see the light of day until February 2013. The date comes from an anonymous tipster to SamMobile, just two weeks after European carriers announced the first delay.

The Samsung ATIV S was the first official Windows Phone 8 smartphone, but now it’s the last of the first wave of phones to make it to the market. The phone uses a dual-core 1.5GHz processor like other high-end Windows Phone 8 devices and has a 4.8-inch 720p display just like the Samsung Galaxy S III.

The front of the Samsung ATIV S also looks a lot like the Galaxy S III. The phone has the same basic shape as the Android flagship phone, and the same three button layout (albeit with the Windows Phone layout instead of Android layout). The back of the Samsung ATIV S looks more in line with previous Samsung Windows Phones however and not much like the Galaxy S III.

It’s not clear why Samsung hasn’t shipped the ATIV S yet. There’s a chance that it can’t meet the pre-orders of the phone yet. More likely however is Samsung wants to give the Galaxy S III and Galaxy Note II more time on the market without another high-end Samsung phone competing with them.

Samsung also has a Windows Phone 8 device lined up for a U.S. release, the Samsung ATIV Odyssey. The ATIV Odyssey looks like the ATIV S, but it’s much smaller, and is either a low-end or mid-range device. The Samsung ATIV Odyssey will come to Verizon sometime this month, and there’s a chance it will be free on contract. Neither Verizon nor Samsung have said anything about the device since its announcement, however.