We originally heard about it in a leaked Verizon roadmap a few months ago (where it was rumored to be Verizon's version of the Galaxy S II), and now the Samsung Stratosphere is officially on its way to Verizon. The phone with be the first 4G LTE handset on the carrier with a QWERTY keyboard, and will come sporting a 4-inch Super AMOLED display, 1GHz Cortex A8 processor, and running Android 2.3.

You can snag one of the handsets on the 13th  for $149.99 with a new two-year contract.

Check out some of the key features Verizon listed for the handset below, and tell us what you think in the comments!Is the Stratosphere out of this world?

SamsungStratosphereKey Features

  •     4G LTE – customers can expect fast download speeds of 5 to 12 megabits per second (Mbps) and upload speeds of 2 to 5 Mbps in 4G LTE mobile broadband coverage areas
  •     Five-row QWERTY keyboard
  •     Samsung Super AMOLED™ Screen Technology makes watching movies, viewing videos and playing games come to life, even in bright light and outdoor environments
  •     Android™ 2.3 Gingerbread – support for Google™ Mobile Services including Gmail™, YouTube™, Google Talk™, Google Search™, Google Maps™ and access to more than 250,000 apps available to download from Android Market™
  •     Samsung 1 GHz Cortex A8 Hummingbird Application Processor
  •     Front-facing 1.3-megapixel camera for video chat and 5-megapixel rear-facing camera with autofocus and flash (720p HD playback and 480p DVD-quality recording)
  •     Mobile Hotspot Capability – share 4G connection with up to eight Wi-Fi enabled devices or a 3G connection with up to five devices
  •     AllShare™ – enables wireless connectivity through Digital Living Network Alliance® (DLNA), so customers can send multimedia content to other DLNA Certified®-enabled devices such as TVs and laptops
  •     Samsung Media Hub – Samsung's own content service, offering a vast lineup of critically acclaimed films and TV programs for rent or purchase
  •     Bluetooth® 3.0 technology – support for headset, hands-free, stereo, phonebook access, and object push for vCard and vCalendar
  •     Multiple video file formats supported, including DivX and XviD
  •     Wi-Fi Connectivity (802.11 a/b/g/n)