We brought you the best iPad apps of the US launch back in April, but now the iPad has finally landed here in the UK, we thought we’d bring you a revamped list, factoring in all the must have apps that have hit the store between then and now.
Over the weeks since we published our iPad UK review, we’ve been using the tablet non stop, testing out new programs and features, and we’ve come up with a crack list of all our favourite, most used, essential selections. Without further ado, here are the very best iPad apps available right now: download them today!
Wired
Price on the iPad App Store: £2.99
Publishing giant Conde Nast has picked the right mag to make its flagship on the iPad: the newly release June issue is an incredible example of what tablets can do. You can check out footage of Toy Story 3,and even an interactive map of Mars exploration. It’s one of the best iPad apps, and even better, we should be seeing it monthly too!
Kindle
Price on the iPad App Store: Free
While we’re glad some of Apple’s iBooks are already on sale for iPad UK owners, it’s always nice to have competition, and the Kindle iPad app aptly provides it. If you can’t find an iBook you want, it’s always worth looking on the Kindle Store: once you’re reading the actual text, the differences fade away, and the syncing options with Kindles, Kindle for PC, Mac and other mobiles are excellent. Pick up exactly where you left on in seconds!
Scrabble
Price on the iPad App Store: $9.99
An incredible example of how to merge iPads and iPhones you may already have, the Scrabble iPad app has made us fall in love with the game all over again. You don’t just have a bigger screen to drop your seven letter bombshells on, but free iPhone apps that let you hide your letters from other players on a small screen, then flick them onto the board over Wi-Fi! Sadly, it’s only in the US Store right now, which may prove tricky if you didn’t import, but since it’s one of the very best iPad apps there is, we’re hopeful it’ll be winging its way cross the pond soon.
LiveSketch HD
Price on the iPad App Store: 59p
For the price, the LiveSketch HD iPad app is an absolute steal: it can turn even the most cackhanded doodler into a master of fine art. It works by adding in shading around what you draw, resulting in stylish looking sketches. Don’t believe us? We drew this picture of a light bulb in a few short minutes.
Harbor Master HD
Price on the iPad App Store: Free
We almost feel wrong that one of the best iPad apps, and certainly one of the most addictive, on the store is going for free. The goal is simple: help all the boats in to the harbour (Ignore the US spelling folks!), help them unload their cargo and leave. Stopping the influx of flotillas from crashing however? A never-ending task.
GoodReader
Price on the iPad App Store: 59p
GoodReader may be one of the best iPad apps for viewing PDF files, but it does a lot more besides. It’s an incredibly useful tool for dumping files and carrying them around with you, where iTunes limits you to media. You can transfer over Wi-Fi or from emails, but it’s the integration with DropBox we love the most. If you’ve signed up, you can drop files on to it from anywhere!
Marvel Comics
Price on the iPad App Store: Free
Even if you do find yourself put off reading whole novels on an LCD screen, there’s no denying the iPad handles comics gloriously well. The Marvel Comics app is by far the best example of this, letting you buy and preview issues old and new from across Marvel’s stable of superheroes. On the day we first got our iPad, this was the app which first made us sit down and just say “Wow”.
SketchBook Pro
Price on the iPad App Store: £4.99
While LiveSketch HD is perfect for dodgy drawers like us, the SketchBook Pro iPad app really helps the more skilful take full advantage of Apple’s tablet, with layers, adjustable brushes, undo and full HSB and RGB colour wheels. Kit yourself out with a special stylus, and you’ve got the ultimate digital easel.
IMDb
Price on the iPad App Store: Free
In the month and a half we’ve been using our iPad, the tablet trailblazer has spent most of its time kicking back on the sofa. Which makes it the ideal partner for looking up actor names and other movie titbits while we watch – the Internet Movie Database is of course the go to website whenever “What’s he been in before?” moment happens, and its iPad app makes answering those questions even easier.
TVCatchup
Price on the iPad App Store: NA
Who’d have though that one of the best iPad apps would be a website. You won’t catch this on the iPad App Store ever, but the brilliant site for live TV streaming to the iPhone works a treat on the iPad too. You can stream live TV over Wi-Fi (And should be able to over 3G too with a 3G iPad and data plan) and it fills the whole screen. you’ll need to sign up, but registration is free.
