Google have been the top search engine since it was released in 1998. Over the following 25+ years, the company branched out further than the web, exploring the smartphone, smart tech and computing industry. When Google finally released their Pixel smartphone in 2016, they were placed in the top 3 best tech brands along with Samsung and Apple. But we think they have the potential to take that number one spot. So let's take a look at why Google have always been ahead of the tech industry and why they deserve more recognition.
Related blog: Best Smartphone AI Tricks
What is the number 1 search engine in the world?
To begin with, let's start with Googles roots as the iconic Google search engine - a simple grey screen with a search box, 6 letters and 4 colours. Google retains an 89% share of the global market and is the most popular and reliable search engine, since its release, other smaller search engines like Bing and Yahoo! have shown up on the scene, but they've never came close to Google's success. Of course, Google come number one in terms of web and search engines, they've been in the game for over 20 years!
What does Google Glass actually do?
One of the first ways Google verged out of the search engine name was actually through smart glasses, which at the time weren't very popular at all because wearable tech was barely a thing. In 2013, Google released the Google Glass, a wearable, voice and motion-controlled pair of glasses that displayed information directly in the user's field of vision. They had a good run eventually being discontinued in 2023 for being 'pointless' and not a good fit for a consumer electronic device. Although not the most successful throughout their decade-long run, they helped pave the way for other designers because developers could witness Google Glass' mistakes and avoid them in production.
In the following years, we saw many more smart glasses releasing including Snap Goggles in 2016, Ray-Ban smart glasses in 2023 and Vuzix glasses in 2024. Google began that step to move away from communication via smartphone and experiment with other, wearable options.
Is Google Cardboard still available?
After the long-lasting success of the experiment that was Google Glass, Google again took a trip down another popular tech industry route, Virtual Reality. In 2014, Google released Google Cardboard, an inexpensive device that powers VR through any smartphone running the 'Cardboard-enabled' apps. The user would place their phone into the Google Cardboard machine and load up the Google Cardboard app. Then, using the lenses in the front users could view any 360-degree videos they wished. This tech was the first ever experiment with mobile use and virtual reality.
Since then, we've seen many big VR brands such as Oculus 2016, HTC 2016, Sony VR 2016 and the Apple Vision Pro 2024! Back in 2014, a VR headset was very expensive, and people were still unsure if the tech was worth the money, so this cheap, sustainable option was a great tester to see if the big, expensive stuff was worth it. The Google Cardboard is still available now, so you can head to Google's official website and check it out!
Is Google Pixel worth buying?
With the success of the Apple iPhones and Samsung Galaxy models, Google was always going to attempt to jump onto the most successful bandwagon there is... smartphones! In 2016, Google revealed the Google Pixel, a direct competitor to the iPhone. In our opinion at Stock Must Go, we honestly think the Pixel is one of the best smartphone options there is. Although it joined the industry much later than the competition, Google has certainly taken their audience into account when carefully crafting each smartphone.
And this can be proven with their release of Gemini in 2023, the Pixel's artificial intelligence. Google was the first smartphone to integrate AI into their smartphones, simplifying photography, navigation and communication on the phone. This AI was proven to be a success because straight after, Samsung and Apple released their AI in 2024. The Pixel 8 Series also won the Best Smartphone Award at the Global Mobile Awards 2023, and yet again won the Best Smartphone Award at the Global Mobile Awards 2024, with the Pixel 9 Pro. So it was clear, that Google AI was the way forward.
(Let's not forget in 2025, it was revealed Samsung would partner with Google to create the Galaxy S25 integrating Google smartphone AI into the new Samsung phone.)
What does a Google Nest do?
And finally, we've got the tech tech that already existed that Google integrated themselves into. Smart security and home living.
In 2021, Google released the Google Nest, a doorbell with a camera that connects to an app so you can see who's at your door. Much like RING, which was released much earlier in 2014, Google Nest quickly became a hit! It began to surpass RING being described as the 'more advanced' smart camera in terms of features and technology. Nest has a more extensive line-up of products, along with a contract on low-price security packages.
Moving on, Google Home was released in 2016 and is similar to the Apple Alexa and Amazon Echo both released in 2014. Through reviewing all products and reading online reviews, it seems Google Assistant is much smarter than Apple, with a flexible response, impressive memory and leniency with grouping devices.
What does Google actually sell?
- Pixel Smartwatch
- Pixel Buds Pro
- Google Pixel Tablet
- Google Chromebook
- Google TV
Related blog: Are Smart Glasses The New Trend?
Conclusion:
It's clear that in a lot of genres Google visit they completely put their audience in the spotlight to create a product that's exactly what their target customers are interested in. Most of the tech mentioned in this blog came from Google first, with a couple being pre-released prior to Google. Any of these tech picks that Google jumped onto, overtook the market and excelled the competition.
Because they aren't the 'biggest' smartphone brand and are still seen as a search engine company, many people tend to undermine Google. But we think they're the ones to look out for over the next couple of years. With their partnerships with other big brands and increasing improvements in the AI realm, it'll be interesting to see where Google take their tech over the next couple of years. We can't wait to see!
