Microsoft has finally decided that it's time for the imminent Windows Phone 8 to make its presence felt in the market. Per reports, the company has now started sending out invitations for launch of the Windows Phone 8, which is set for an Oct.29 unveiling in San Francisco.

Previously, there have been widespread rumors that Microsoft would debut its highly anticipated mobile operating system Windows Phone 8 by the end of October. To add to it, there have also been a number of high-profile leaks on the web regarding the OS' features and abilities. However, all doubts will now be cleared on Oct. 29 when Microsoft finally makes the new operating system official.

On Monday, at 10AM, Microsoft will show off to the world their new mobile OS originally codenamed 'Apollo'. The announcement has arrived just days before the first expected availability of new Windows Phone 8 devices, which was thought to be occurring on Nov. 4.

There have been speculations earlier that Microsoft may have just finished the development, and is now providing finishing touches to Windows Phone 8's final build. To make the development interesting, a photo uploaded to a Chinese social networking site (Sina Weibo), which was discovered by LiveSino, showed Microsoft employees signing on a poster that read Windows Phone 8 RTM. Microsoft Phone's Corporate Vice President, Terry Myerson was also present in the photo and was seen signing the poster as well.

When WP8 gets unveiled on Oct. 29, it will finally take on the two dominant forces currently heading the smartphone market - Google's Android and Apple's iOS. However, this venture is not the company's first attempt as this OS will be an improvement over the previously released Windows Phone 7 back in 2010, which was then followed by Windows Phone 7.5 in late 2011.

As expected, the new OS will be arriving with a number of improvements over its predecessors. Although the features have been rumored on the Internet repeatedly, the ones that are expected to eventually make it include wireless NFC sharing (sharing photos, documents, and contacts), a bigger and sharper screen (two new resolutions - 1280 x 768 and 1280 x 720), new and improved apps, especially games, a more secure and fast Internet Explorer 10, and more.