I've noticed when Steve was out for medical reasons prior to this the board of directors sat on their hands and waited for something new to appear on it's own. Which it didn't!
Jobs brought himself back into the picture and what appears new phone, new Ipad, and who knows what other ideas and projects were placed in the proverbial oven. But if they don't fly on their own the people at Apple are going to sit and sink.
There is rumor that Steve selected his replacement, but will the substructure running Apple simply accept that, or will they fight it?
People forget that Jobs was kicked out of his own company once. Then they asked him to return after they wallowed in their own self doubt and lack of imagination, as the company faced rumors of it's own demise for how long?
Okay putting soap box back into closet!