Yahoo revamps its logo, but will anyone notice the difference?

Yahoo says it has made a major change to its logo, but unless you have studied design it’s hard to tell the difference.

The Sunnyvale, Calif., company unveiled the new design on Tumblr late Wednesday night, and it does appear the company came up with a new design after 18 years that looks more serious and hip.

The design, which can be seen in the video above, keeps many of Yahoo’s traditional logo elements. The color scheme remains purple, the letters capitalized and, perhaps most important, the exclamation mark is still there.

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But other parts of the logo are different, if you look closely.

For example, the logo no longer has those little tails at the end of each letter called serifs and each letter is thinner and taller than before. Additionally, Yahoo went with a chiseled look for each letter, adding depth to its logo while most of the tech world has been gravitating toward so-called “flat” design in recent years.

“We knew we wanted a logo that reflected Yahoo -- whimsical, yet sophisticated. Modern and fresh, with a nod to our history. Having a human touch, personal. Proud,” said Yahoo Chief Executive Marissa Mayer, in a post on Tumblr.

Here you can compare the new and old logos.

So what is Yahoo trying to convey with its new logo? Well, by keeping so many similar elements as before, Yahoo knows its brand still has value when it comes to certain services -- such as trending news and fantasy sports, for example.

But by adding a sleeker, more serious look to the logo, Yahoo may also be signaling to consumers and others in the tech world that this is a company that fully intends to be a force to be reckoned with.

Here’s a sampling of some of the reaction to the new logo on the Web.

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