An astute friend of mine once satirically defined our age of seemingly instant obsolescence: just buy and thro-o-o-ow it away. At first blush, it's funny because it can't be true — you don't buy something and then just throw it away. But after Apple's iPad press event Tuesday I'm not so sure.

In the Chuck Jones cartoon classic, "Hare Tonic," Elmer Fudd is convinced by a certain long-eared leporid that he has contracted a case of the dreaded rabbititis, complete with swirling red-and-yellow spots before his eyes. I'm getting the sense Samsung is suffering from a similar sickness I'm calling Apple-itis. Lately, every marketing move Samsung makes includes some overt or covert reference to products from — or customers of — the Cupertino giant. While perhaps initially clever, Samsung's growing obsession with Apple is becoming wearying. Worse, it's ruining my post-season baseball enjoyment.

Today is the one-year anniversary of the death of Steve Jobs and the tributes and remembrances of the tech icon's life have been surfacing all week. But Apple made the biggest statement today by devoting its homepage to a video retrospective of Jobs' life.

In the days and weeks following the passing of Steve Jobs nearly a year ago, there was much speculation about how Apple would fare without its visionary-in-chief. Sure, Tim Cook was a wizard at managing Apple's supply chain and complex web of partnerships, and Jony Ive is a masterful designer. But like any game of Jenga, remove one key piece and the whole structure collapses, regardless of its previous integrity. Yes, the iPhone 5 is a wonderful phone, and Apple will sell a gazillion of them. But it's not a peerless phone. And given Apple's recent iOS 6 issues, one has to wonder just how much Jobs's magical eye for detail and anticipating what we want before we knew we wanted it is missed. The clue that Steve Jobs's presence at Apple's helm is missed isn't what's amiss with iPhone and iOS 6, but what's missing.