Diane's Cluttered Desk: iPad 2 and my Free Apps

My awesome dad gave me an iPad 2 as a graduation gift. He had my cousin reserve a unit and fall in line for 4 hours on release day to claim it. I received the iPad through my cousin's balikbayan friend. :D

Image from HardCandy Cases Official Website

My dad was supposed to get me a Smart Cover but I told him not to get it due to lukewarm reviews online. I am eyeing the SwitchEasy Canvass. SwitchEasy has the magnetic features of the SmartCover while offering protection for the back portion of the iPad, a feature that the Smart Cover lacks. However, the SwitchEasy Canvass is not available yet here in the Philippines. In the meantime, I got the HardCandy Convertible iPad2 Case for less than PhP 2,000. It does not have the automatic switch but does protect my unit and can hold it in 3 different positions.

After getting over the dilemma of protecting the hardware, there is the issue of maximizing the use of the iPad. A current peeve of mine is the hype over accessories for the iPad than the use of iPad itself. I was hoping for more insights on applications from local forums but people like to talk about their accessories but rarely talk about what they do on their iPad.

Having said that, I am actually a productivity junkie. I do love my to do lists written on my little post-its. During college, I do carry around my hipster PDA for managing my papers and other requirements. I maximized Microsoft Onenote in taking down notes during lectures and meetings, and for my research. I keep a ledger of our household income and expenses.

Enter the iPad in my life. The iPad replaced my Asus netbook in terms of consumption of information. I check my email, social networks and read the news on the iPad. I also create content with the iPad. This blog post was written on an the iPad at a coffee shop while waiting for my companion to arrive. I have the following apps installed on my iPad:

Plain Text for writing and note taking. I like its clean interface.
Evernote synced also with my netbook.
Dropbox for syncing with my netbook. I tend to review my stuff from work during days when i'm at the office.
Flipboard where I check the news through Google Reader. It helps that Flipboard give you a feel of reading a magazine. I also read Facebook and Twitter feeds using this app.
Project Manager where I put long term projects to figure out what i need to do with them
iBooks for reading my PDFs, usually laws.
MyPad for Facebook only. Give an almost full Facebook feel complete with chat.
ToDo which I sync with my Google Tasks.
Yahoo Messenger is my dad's application of choice to contact me and my brother.
iSleep as my alarm clock.