Apple (AAPL 1.27%) infamously likes to keep lots of control over its products. At times, that's made the company look like a control freak, while other tech companies took a much more open approach. But recently, Alphabet's (GOOG 0.74%) (GOOGL 0.55%) Google and Microsoft (MSFT 0.37%) have both made very Apple-like moves. 

With the debut of its new Surface Book last month, Microsoft continues to show its commitment to pairing its own hardware with its software. And even Google is making moves to become more like Apple. A recent article in The Information said that Google is thinking about designing its own mobile chips, just like Apple does, so that upcoming Android features will work better.

While technology companies often borrow ideas from each other, the latest moves by Google and Microsoft show that Apple's micromanaging of hardware and software may be the best path to making great products after all. Click on the slideshow below to find out more.

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