In the applied science universe , being self-satisfied is deadly . Something that ’s innovative , revolutionary , or classic is needs tired and decrepit just a few long time later . As Steve Jobs himself preached , stay relevant is always about moving ahead . At Apple ’s 2013 Worldwide Developers Conference ( WWDC ) we envision Apple itself take a revolutionary product that ’s by many standards still the best in the industry , and interchange it into something Modern .

I ’m not spill about iOS , although the rule utilize there too — Io 7is the form of move you ’d expect for the company that replaced the iPod mini with the iPod nano .

I ’m talking about musical note , way — the entirevibe — of Apple itself .

It was detectable in the euphony Apple played before the tonic — hipper , jr. , with few top - of - the - chart smashes and classic rock and roll numbers . It was clear in the degree demeanour of Apple ’s giver , not to cite the format of the tonic itself . This was the first really post - Steve Jobs keynote .

Replacing the standard

It used to be that tech companies did n’t do big standalone events to harbinger products or initiatives . There were insistency releases or mayhap press conference at the Consumer Electronics Show . The modern geological era of giant invitation - only extravaganzasexists because of the wild success Apple hadwith such events , lead by its Centennial State - founder Steve Jobs on stage .

I ca n’t count how many Steve Jobs presentation I ’ve been to . The former 1 were a small ragged , but for the last 10 or so years of Jobs ’s life story , they followed a remarkably consistent templet . The euphony , the occasional clowning bit from an outsider , adrop - in from Apple SVP of Worldwide Product Marketing Phil Schiller — I could likely write a al-Qur’an defining just what made a Steve Jobs Keynote what it was , but that ’s not the point .

The point is , when Steve Jobs left the stage , Apple hold open soldiering on with the format . And quite right , too . Why mess with what sour ? But metre has a rummy way of mute the cutting edge and turning dynamical personalities into diachronic figure . And at WWDC 2013 , I take in clear signs that today ’s Apple is not afraid to get out from under the tail of Steve Jobs ’s legendary keynote .

A lot of the burden of the post - Jobs keynote geological era go down on Tim Cook ’s shoulder . mouth about your tough acts to keep an eye on . Cook ’s plan of attack has been a good one , in that he ’s never attempted to be Steve Jobs . He does n’t bring out products himself , for instance . Instead , Cook stays unfeigned to Cook . He ’s improved as a donor over the year , to be sure , but his slow speak measure and role as Apple CEO position him properly as the hombre who pose the bounteous impression . Cook ’s role is to verbalize about Apple ’s vision and philosophical system and not get catch up in the details . He ’s businesslike , and I think it work .

The other donor provided a nice contrast to Cook . Phil Schiller was a backbone of Jobs keynote , fundamentally Jobs ’s brother . At the WWDC 2013 keynote , he was probably informal and feisty than I ’ve ever seen him on stage . “ Ca n’t introduce any more , my ass , ” he said , speak Apple ’s critics foreland - on . Steve Jobs would often take shots at Apple ’s contender , but Schiller was directly addressing Apple ’s critic , and doing it with attitude . These are words of an Apple that ’s confident but not above the fray .

And SVP of Software Engineering Craig Federighi , once visibly nervous onstage , has turned into a guy rope who works the elbow room like a seasoned stand - up comic . ( I practically expected him to lead off calling out city names in gild to elicit applause from the audience—“Who ’s here from New York City ? ” ) It ’s gentle for these Apple keynotes , specially in the absence of Jobs , to come in across as somewhat soulless dispatches of selling messages from on in high spirits , adjectives like “ magical ” and “ amazing ” waver down on us as the great companionship presents its latest second of paragon .

Humans, not wizards

Federighi ’s willingness to go off script and show some humanity ( and humbleness ) broke down a fortune of those barriers and become across what Apple wants to come across : that Apple is not a company lam by magician who work in secret to bestow miracle on mass . rather , in itscustom keynote videoand itsnew TV ad , we ’re see an Apple that wants to be understood as a bunch of severely - play human being who just require to make the very best stuff .

It ’s part of the tonic shift that came with the release of thePhotos Every Daycommercial . There , too , Apple is underline the personal , human component , with technology only as an assist .

There were some other change - ups in the keynote that were welcome . Instead of a parade of ( mostly high - profile ) developers doing lengthy app demos , there was a individual demo . It was early on anda little weird , but then it was over . The pace of the entire broadcast was steady . feature of speech were enter and cursorily demoed — sometimes Jobs - chair keynote would linger too long over a favorite small-scale feature of speech .

This tonic was packed , two hours that were on subject matter and brimming with subject . It was quite a contrast to Google’sthree - hour keynoteatitsdeveloper league , which was unfocussed and too long . Apple ’s keynote left all sorts of details on the cutting - elbow room floor ; parts of Google ’s presentation seemed to be from internal product group that want the spotlight but did n’t actually have much to say .

This is the new message

Apple ’s buff and critic will find much to consider about the essence of the presentation , but one thing is indisputable : Apple is change its approach path . The way it symbolize itself to the public has changed . The products it announced on Monday admit some bold strokes , from the name of OS X Mavericks to the bold redesign of Io 7 and the wild newfangled look of the Mac Pro .

Are there risks in these change ? Of course , but sticking with an one-time , more and more out - of - day of the month playbook would have been big . Steve Jobs is buy the farm , but before he left he demanded that the people at Apple not keep call for themselves what he would have done . After an appropriate period of bereavement , this is the new expression of Apple .

I care it . But more than that , I care that there ’s a new face and unexampled vigour get along from Apple . The tasteful black wearing apparel are back in the W.C. . life sentence goes on , and so does Apple .