iOS7 set for Sept. 18 release

While the focus of Tuesday's event in Cuptertino was on the new hardware, the bigger change coming for iPhone users is arguably the software -- the new iOS 7.

Apple's Vice President of software engineering Craig Federighi, in showing off the new operating system, was expansive in describing the change from the previous version.

“Installing iOS 7 on your phone is like getting a whole new phone -- but one that you know how to use,” he said.

And while many of the elements are in the same place, the visual palette is completely new in iOS 7 than from the previous versions.

The new "flat" look -- coming from the removal of Apple's beloved skeuomorphic style -- plus brighter colors and transparent overlays are the most notable changes.

Notification center, while still a pull-down from the top of the screen, has a whole new look, with calendar events, notifications, and missed notifications in separate tabs. A brand-new Control Center, a pull-up element from the bottom of the screen, allows instant access to airplane mode, WiFi and Bluetooth, brightness, music player, calculator, flashlight, clock and camera.

Built-in apps such as Safari, weather, and Maps also have a new look. The camera app has square, panoramic, HDR and filter options, and the photo app now sorts images automatically into years, "collections" and "moments."

The whole package is very slick, and, as some have pointed out, reminiscent of the direction both Android and Windows have gone with their operating systems.