Unfortunately I agree with you. I had posed a question to an accessory thread regarding Apple's decision not to make a dock for the 5. I suggested that tiny little decisions like that can be a bellwether to a culture change.
I was appalled at the response of one person who basically went ballistic on me telling me I was "polluting" the dock discussion. (A moderator eventually cleaned up the mess but not before making me think twice about the nature of fanboys.)
There are so many intangibles that make up a relationship between a brand and end-users. SJ seemed to have an innate understanding of that fact and making, for the most part, brilliant decisions to strengthen that relationship. And now...barely a year after his passing and the ship that is Apple seems to be struggling in ways it has never struggled before...at least publicly.
The Forstall departure, despite all the hoorays over the death of skeuomorphism is a helluva lot more troubling than not if you actually look at his contributions. Yeah Siri and Maps were crash and burns and yeah, maybe it was time for a change. That doesn't change the fact that Mr. Cook seems to be having a very tough time doing what SJ made look easy.
Anyway, enough from me. I don't think the end is near but to paraphrase Yogi Berra, the future sure ain't what it used to be.
2nd kudos from me, interesting & relevant argument made here.
I'm also quite surprised important & essential apps like the official YouTube app, which was released in August & haven't seen a single update since, have not been updated. I'm not certain if Apple rushes their developers to update for the 4" display, but if they do, that's great.
Just like you, I can't say I'm particularly optimistic about the road Apple is currently trekking. Apple law suits are now in abundance, recent Forstall departure has raised hopes exponentially for the next revision of iOS, & the Apple Maps fiasco has reached a point of no return & hopelessness.
Stand back & watch the show, guys. The next few years is paramount for the development of this famous (probably infamous too) company, every single step will determine & play a role in the direction they will move. Whether its moving forwards or a regression, I can only wish them the best.