Good news for Windows Phone fans, as Microsoft has reportedly shipped the next version of the operating system to handset manufacturers. This means that, assuming that tests are successful, we should have the first devices powered by Windows Phone 8.1 as early as next month.

It seems that Windows Phone 8.1 is finally ready to roll, and we may even have a target date for when we can expect to see it rolling out on new phones.

According to a report from WP Central, Microsoft delivered the final version of Windows Phone 8.1 to its manufacturing partners on March 26. Following up on that nugget of information, the report also revealed that it appears the first phones to launch with the new version of the operating system will be ready to hit stores on April 23.

What isn’t clear at this time is which phones will be available come April 23, but the Samsung ATIV SE seems a likely candidate considering how many leaks we have seen for it. Nokia also has a presentation scheduled for this week and the Lumia 630 and Lumia 930 are said to be on deck and ready to launch.

With Microsoft’s Build conference kicking off this week, it seems like the perfect time to make all of this news official, so expect a lot of Windows Phone announcements over the next several days.

SOURCE WINDOWS PHONE CENTRAL