If you’re thinking about getting a new smartphone, chances are that you’re considering getting and iPhone or an Android-powered device. There is a third alternative that most people forget about: you could get a Windows Phone (a smartphone powered by Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 operating system). The news is that Microsoft has an offer meant to push you to take that third alternative.

Microsoft’s Michael Stroh announced earlier this month that you will get $25 worth of apps if you purchase a new Windows Phone. And more to the point, if you get a brand new Windows Phone, you will get a prepaid $25 app card that you can use to purchase any app you want. Keep reading to find some important details about this offer.

• The offer is available until the end of the year. You are eligible for an app card if you purchase a Windows Phone between November 2 and December 31. They will be sent out via snail mail; they are physical gift cards, not electronic coupon codes.
• The offer is available in the US and Puerto Rico only.
• You can redeem your prepaid $25 app card here. You have until February 14 to redeem your card.
• You can read the term and conditions for this offer here.

I mentioned above that you could use the $25 Microsoft is giving via this promotion to get any app you want to for Windows Phone. I would like to mention here that Microsoft recently announced that there are more than 40,000 titles in the Windows Phone Marketplace.

That number seems big, but only if you don’t know how many apps the competition has to offer. If you get an iPhone, you will have access to more than 500,00 apps; that’s how many there are in Apple’s App Store. And if you get an Android-powered device you will have access to some 400,000 apps in the Android Market.

While it is true that the number of apps in the Windows Phone Marketplace is continually growing, the same can be said about the App Store and Android Market. The difference is that the competition is already way ahead of Microsoft.