Nokia, HTC front and center on Windows Phone 8 invitation

It's really official now: Microsoft will unveil its Windows Phone 8 operating system at an event in San Francisco the morning of Monday, Oct. 29.

While we knew the date was going down, Microsoft has interestingly (though not surprisingly) decided to imbed event details in depictions of four WP8 devices on the invitations.

The invite TechRadar received is swathed with a yellow Lumia 920, Nokia's flagship Windows Phone 8 device though one Microsoft didn't exactly fawned over upon release.

That attention was placed heavily on HTC, with the software-making Softies teaming up with the Taiwanese manufacturer to announce the Windows 8X and Windows 8S.

Microsoft even called the Windows 8X "the signature of the Windows Phone 8 brand."

Plenty of Windows Phone 8 to go around

Though the two companies are pitted against one another in the market, Microsoft is sending a clear message that it isn't playing favorites, at least not during the OS's announcement.

By splitting the spotlight between the two carriers, Microsoft is setting the stage for an all-encompassing Windows Phone 8 love-fest a few weeks from now.

The relations between HTC and Nokia haven't exactly been fuzzy, with reports surfacing late last month that Nokia was considering a lawsuit over the 8X's design.

TechRadar will be front and center at Oct. 29's event, bringing you all the Windows Phone 8 news and reviews for each and every phone, OS and whatever else Microsoft throws our way.