Nokia, BlackBerry aim to elbow in on Android parade

Nokia and its Microsoft's Windows Phone franchise and BlackBerry are looking to make some product headway in May as a steady stream of Android devices from the likes of Samsung and HTC hit the market.

For the two platforms battling to be a viable No. 3 May could prove to be a critical month to gain traction.

Nokia is planning on launching its latest Lumia on May 14 in London. CNET noted that a new flagship could be on tap. Details about the event are sparse, but the timing is notable since BlackBerry has its BlackBerry Jam event the same week in Florida. In addition, Google's Android-heavy I/O conference will kick off at the same time in San Francisco.

As for BlackBerry, the company's main devices are the Z10 and q10. The Q10 received good reviews overall, but it's unclear whether BlackBerry can widen its base of users.

BlackBerry Jam is likely to be part BlackBerry 10 cheerleading session with a mix of future roadmap dropped in.

In either case, Windows Phone and BlackBerry 10 need May to be productive to grab mind- and market-share. After all, once the Android onslaught---HTC One and First and Samsung Galaxy S4---ebbs it'll be time to talk about Apple's latest iPhone.