7 Google Products in 2013

Google celebrated its 15th anniversary this year !!!

1.Google Glass

In 2013, for the first time, the mantle of innovation was passed from Apple to Google. This was largely possible because of Google Glass, the first optically-driven wearable computer aimed at general consumers.

Glass isn't set to hit the mass market until 2014, but the company began disseminating units to an unspecified number of "explorers" early this year. That led to a wave of publicity, then a backlash and now, as the year comes to a close, continued uncertainty about the viability of the category.

Google Glass's primary issue is a chicken-and-egg problem: Since so few people own a pair, they are not yet socially acceptable. A major part of the Glass experience is receiving weird looks from others. Google could work out some of those kinks; a partnership with fashionable eyewear brand Warby Parker, for example, would likely yield some less geeky designs. Even if Glass is a colossal flop, though, the product has succeeded it making Apple look comparatively timid with its lineup of mildly tweaked phones (think: the iPhone 5C and 5S) and tablets and rumored iWatch.

2.Android Takes 81% of the Market

Though many consumers continue to equate the smartphone with the iPhone,four-fifths of all smartphones actually sport Android. That means that the smartphone market is shaping up to look a lot like the PC segment, with Google playing the role of Microsoft. Butwhile Windows is a cash cow for Microsoft, Google doesn't actually make any money from Android.Instead, Android is designed to sell advertising. With such a large chunk of the market, Google has brilliantly transitioned from the desktop era to the mobile age.

Of course, that's not how Apple sees it. In a September interview with Bloomberg Businessweek, Apple CEO Tim Cook cited stats showing that despite Android's market-share dominance, 55% of mobile traffic comes from iOS devices. Cook also indirectly dubbed many of Android-based devices as "junk." Again, this is a moot point when your intention is to sell ads.

3.Google Buys Waze for $1.1 Billion

The world earned new respect for Google Maps in 2012 after Apple's disastrous introduction of Maps. But the mapping category keeps evolving. Waze, an Israeli company, was ahead of the curve with incorporating real-time information, like traffic, into maps. Many realized Waze was one of very few companies to offer such data along with its own credible mapping infrastructure, which set off a bidding war that reportedly included Apple and Facebook. In the end, Google and, as a result, maintained its reputation as the Internet's premiere cartographer.

4.Moto X Launches

In August, Google announced the Moto X, the first smartphone designed together by Google and its Motorola unit. (This was also the first major release to follow the company's $12 billion purchase of Motorola.) Though the Moto X received positive reviews, it lacked any strong differentiator. Even its Touchless Control, which brings your phone to life by uttering "OK Google now," appeared in a new line of Verizon Droid smartphones the week before the Moto X was unveiled.

In other words, this wasn't seen as a breakthrough — a tough challenge with so many other Android manufacturers. Moto, which was seen as a hedge against patent trolls, has not yet seamlessly integrated into the company and appears to be just one of many partners, albeit one that Google owns.

5.The Introduction of Chromecast

In August, Google announced the Moto X, the first smartphone designed together by Google and its Motorola unit. (This was also the first major release to follow the company's $12 billion purchase of Motorola.) Though the Moto X received positive reviews, it lacked any strong differentiator. Even its Touchless Control, which brings your phone to life by uttering "OK Google now," appeared in a new line of Verizon Droid smartphones the week before the Moto X was unveiled.

In other words, this wasn't seen as a breakthrough — a tough challenge with so many other Android manufacturers. Moto, which was seen as a hedge against patent trolls, has not yet seamlessly integrated into the company and appears to be just one of many partners, albeit one that Google owns.

6.Google Stock Hits $1,000

In October, Google stock entered the four-figure range, joining an elite club including Priceline, Seaboard and Berkshire Hathaway. Such psychological barriers are often meaningless — a looming stock split will send it back to three digit territory soon — but it underscored the company's stellar financial performance this year.

7.Google Play Passes 50 Billion App Downloads

This summer, just as Apple announced 50 billion downloads on the App Store, Google was also crowing about the same number of downloads. Google Play launched as Android Market just a few months after the App Store in 2008. However, for much of the ensuing period, Google Play was seen as an also-ran next to the App Store. This is partially because developers generally release iOS versions of their apps ahead of their Android iterations — in fact, often months ahead.

That may be changing. With more than 80% of the global market, justifying an iOS-first strategy is increasingly difficult. If Android does get the edge in new development, it will be harder for consumers to defend their devotion to iOS as well.