Google gets aggressive with new phones, other gadgets

Google ratcheted up its rivalry with Apple and Amazon by unveiling new smartphones, an internet-connected speaker that channels a digital assistant, and other gadgets the company hopes to make indispensable. The devices announced Tuesday are part of Google's bold move to design and sell its own hardware, instead of just supplying Android and other software for other companies to make products. Google's previous attempts at hardware have had limited distribution and included such high-profile flops as its internet-connected Glass headgear. This time around, Google is betting that it can design software and hardware to work seamlessly with each other. That's an art Apple mastered over the past 15 years as it turned out finely crafted iPods, iPhones, iPads and Macs.