Although the UK will be getting its hands on the new iPad tablet computer from Apple this week, it will be more than a month before Ireland gets the device.
The iPad is a variety of things. It’s a work tool, a gaming device and an ideas engine but, fundamentally, it is a media consumption device.
Will it save newspapers and magazines from the ravages of the recession? That’s up to media companies themselves, but I think it will definitely help them realise new avenues of delivery and adding value, especially through new content.
Having been lucky enough to be given the device for a few days, I decided to check out some of the clever iPad apps that demonstrate the new shape of media.
WunderRadio
This app connects you to virtually every radio station on the planet, helping you to find your way through genres, from current affairs to jazz.
Time magazine
This app is probably the best representation of what the future holds in store for magazines.
Readers can see articles presented as they would be in print – but with a difference. Navigation is interactive and ads feature high-res photo galleries and videos.
The New York Times Editor’s Choice
Newspapers look amazing on the iPad and are much more faithful to their print cousins than on any web browsers.
‘The New York Times Editor’s Choice’ app provides a handy digest of what’s happening in world affairs, business and technology.
Marvel Comics
If you can imagine the iPad as a portable lightbox, then just imagine how crisp and clear comic books look on this platform.
Marvel Comics’ iPad app shows the future of the comic book is assured.
Guardian Eye Witness
Photography is saved. The ‘Guardian Eye Witness’ app is an up-to-the-minute window to the latest in photojournalism.
Early Edition
Imagine being able to take all your favourite news websites and blogs and put them inside your own personal newspaper. That’s what Early Edition is – your personal newspaper on the move.
TwitterTube
A video version of Twitter, with the latest tweeted videos as they happen.
Newsy
The future of news is here – breaking video-news reports as they happen.
Mashable
Everything you need to know in terms of what’s breaking in the world of social media.
Brushes
An art app that has already attracted some 300,000 downloads. Think of it as digital finger painting.
Fwix
The GPS technology in the iPad brings you local news relative to your location.
FT Mobile Edition
The epitome of how newspapers could and should present themselves on this new format. Easy to navigate, the newspaper app of the Financial Times is stylish and modern without losing the look and feel of the physical paper.
By John Kennedy
Photo: The Apple iPad tablet computer
Watch a video review of the iPad here: 
