Interesting anecdote about the Android acquisition: Larry and Sergey bought the company without telling Eric Schmidt about it[1]. Google moved into the mobile market on a whim.
Google's strategy seem a lot more planned and methodical from the outside.
For some reason, that doesn't really surprise me. I mean, GMail was basically a whim, and I kinda got that same feeling when Wave came out. The Android acquisition could just be considered like a 20% project, but scaled to the CEO level.
That might just be the kind of thing you have to say when your on the board of a rival smartphone manufacturer at the time your company starts planning a rival.
Google's strategy seem a lot more planned and methodical from the outside.
[1] From a Schmidt press conference last year: "Android purchase, he didn’t even notice Larry and Sergey bought it." - http://searchengineland.com/live-blogging-sergey-brin-eric-s...