Samsung has unveiled a Windows Phone 8 device in the shape of the Samsung Ativ S. Sporting, a huge 4.8-inch HD Super AMOLED display with 1.5GHz dual-core processor, the Samsung Ativ S also has HSPA+42 connectivity.

The Samsung Ativ S weighs in at 135g and measures 137.2 x 70.5 x 8.7mm, dimensions necessary to accomodate the large display. Samsung has also kitted the phone with an 8-megapixel camera and 1.9-megapixel front-facing camera for video calls. Samsung continues its NFC push by embedding a near fields communication chip into the phone, though file sharing can also be made via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth.

With such top-end specs, the Samsung Ativ S provides a Windows Phone 8 alternative to the Android-powered Samsung Galaxy S III that has served the Korean manufacturer so well.

The Ativ moniker is the new brand name for Samsung's Windows devices and, as the eagle-eyed among you will have notices, it is "Vita" in reverse meaning "life" in Latin. No word on what Sony PlayStation has to say about this.

The Samsung Ativ S was unveiled at Samsung's IFA event in Berlin, where the manufacturer also revealed the Samsung Ativ Smart PC (and PC Pro), a Windows 8 tablet with a detachable keyboard and the Samsung Ativ Tab a more conventional tablet device.