If you’re interested in Google products, you may have come across the Google Store. This is where Google sells its own products, but this has not always been the case. The Google Store has an interesting history.
The Google Store started as a tab
Google’s first “store” was the Android Market. It only existed on Android devices, and it provided Android apps and games. Google has slowly added different types of content to the Android Market, requiring a change of brand to ‘Google Play’.
The Google Play Store is home to many different kinds of digital goods, but it was also where Google sold Nexus phones and tablets, Chromecasts and Chromebooks. It all lived under the “Devices” tab in the Play Store.
Eventually, Google became more interested in creating its own hardware, which led to the creation of the Google Store.
“Made by Google”
The first hardware device developed entirely by Google was the Nexus Q media device in 2012. At the moment, the only hardware sold in the Play Store were Nexus devices not built by Google itself.
The Nexus Q eventually failed, but that led to the Chromecast in 2013, which was a huge success. This was just the beginning of Google’s interest in developing its own products and acquiring hardware companies.
The Google Store officially launched in March. Up to this point, Google has only turned on hardware devices. However, the company was preparing to put a lot of pressure in this area, and the launch of the Google Store was an important step.
The following year, Google introduced the first Pixel phones and the original Google Home smart speaker. It started the “Made by Google” initiative. Since then, dozens of products have been launched in the Google Store. There are Pixel phones, Nest smart devices, Chromecasts, Chromebooks and accessories.
What can you buy in the Google Store?
Google distributes digital goods in the Play Store, but as mentioned before, its hardware is sold in the Google Store. These include Pixel phones, Chromebooks, Chromecasts, Nest devices, and some Google Partner products.
The Google Store is not the only place to buy Google hardware. Many of its products can be purchased at retailers, including Best Buy and Amazon. However, if you buy a Google product from Google yourself, you usually get better customer support and replacements.
The Apple Store is an equivalent of the Google Store. It is a store owned by the company and which manufactures the products sold. In both examples, some third-party products can be found, but most items come from the store owner.
Unlike the Apple Store, the Google Store is an online marketplace only. There are no Google stores in the real world. You can find specific Google sections or ‘pop-up stores’ in stores like Best Buy, but this is it.
The one exception to the “physical products” rule in the Google Store is subscriptions. You can buy subscriptions to services like Google One, Stadia Pro and YouTube Premium. These are subscriptions that are usually associated with physical products.
Google’s description of the Google Store is the simplest statement for its purpose: “Google Store for Google-made devices and accessories.” That’s really all it’s.