The iPad 3rd Gen Unboxing, Purchase Rationale and Top Apps

Seventh Messiah bandmate and long time friend James mentioned about HSBC offering Apple products with 0% interest, payable for 2 years, and that his brother got the New iPad (3rd Gen) with it. After looking at the 16GB version’s price, which is roughly around 24k PHP, I did the no-brainer math – 1k per month. He offered to swipe it (for the points maybe lol), and voila! I just planned on paying him 8k every 8 months so I’ll just feel the burden by a third.

We picked it up in UP TechnoHub a week after the omni-swipe. And just like any other victim of Apple’s conniving marketing strategy, I was forced to buy hella-expensive accessories to give iPad-sama the best protection it can have. And to reduce further financial damage in the future, of course I’ve jailbroken it the moment I got home.

So why buy this seemingly overpriced piece of techno-gadgetry?

To each his own, I guess. In my case, here’s the brief:

a.) Client presentations outside my home office. Compared to my 4 year old laptop that still needs A/C power to work, it’s faster to use, much more appealing and more convenient to carry around
b.) I love to read, but most of my stuff is in PDF format and I can only read so much when in front of my desktop, and in my room for that matter. It’s better to read and write outside at places where distraction is minimal
c.) The productivity apps look promising, and could possibly boost motivation and efficiency in handling my business
d.) The music apps interest me, and I wanna play around with ‘em, seeing that others use them in gigs and stuff
e.) There are certain platform games I wanna play that are only available for the iPad
f.) The 5MP HD video camera is awesome, I could use it as an extra camera for my personal shoots
g.) I’ve always wanted to mess around with an Apple gadget, being the Windows enthusiast that I am

Anyway, most of them’s just me convincing myself so I won’t mooch over the cost I spent on this thing lol. In the end, everyone can pretty much do their daily tasks without it (considering the current Filipino business process trend.) So after days of exploring and crash-coursing the iTunes App Store, Cydia and Installous, I was finally able to form my dream team of iPad Apps, whilst still having 5GB to spare.

Here’s a video I made about using some of the visually appealing apps I have:

Apps featured: Stock Video Player playing 1080p HD – 0:10 | Gravitarium2 – 0:52 | FL Studio – 1:33 | dJay – 2:16 | GarageBand – 3:06 | Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions – 4:00 | Infinity Blade II – 4:53 | Tap the Frog 2 5:43 | Command & Conquer: Red Alert – 6:20 | Fruit Ninja – 7:10 | Good Reader – 7:42 | Guitar Pro – 8:14 | Korg iMS-20 – 8:54 | Real Piano II – 9:30

Here’s the full app list:

1.) Good Reader – Read PDF files smoothly, categorize files, add annotations on pages, etc.
2.) Instapaper – Save web pages you don’t have time to ready immediately, but would like to read later
3.) BBC News and Wall Street Journal – Current and business news from BBC and WSJ themselves
4.) Others – Apps that lead you to useful business tips videos and articles all over the net

5.) aNote – Can be used as a notebook, write down ideas, journal entries, to-do list, calendar, work, etc.
6.) Business Model – Create your custom business model map where you can layout your key processes
7.) Calculator – No need to explain. Can also function as a scientific calculator
8.) Currency – Be updated with the latest currencies in the world
9.) Keynote – Make slideshow presentations on the go, Apple’s version of MS PowerPoint
10.) Money – Keep track of your income, expenses and execute your financial plan flawlessly
11.) OmniPlan – Flow chart software e.g. from concert’s stage set-up to performance to packing up
12.) Penultimate – Functions as notebook/s, use finger or tablet pen to write
13.) Quickoffice – Open source version of MS Office, open DOCX, XLSX and PPTX files
14.) ScrumPad Pro – Project management app using post-it notes on a corkboard

15.) Analytics – Official Google Analytics App, keep track of your web site traffic in full detail
16.) Other Social Apps – No need to explain, just lets you login on your mail and profile accounts

17.) Cydia & Installous – The cornerstone of iGadget jailbreaking. Don’t leave your iStuff without it.
18.) FileBrowser – You can put any type of file in it via iTunes Apps, then browse it in your iPad
19.) FTPOnTheGo – Access FTP servers and make changes on the go
20.) Gusto – Web developer tool, edit HTML5, Java, CSS, etc. on the go
21.) iUnarchive – Zips and unzips ZIP, RAR, 7Z files, etc.
22.) OPlayer HD – Play any type of video here since the stock player only supports a few formats
23.) Japanese Apps – Translators, dictionary, tutorial, travel apps, everything about Japan!

24.) Gravitarium2 – Be creative and just play around using your finger while the inspiring music plays
25.) Japan-Radio – Listen to anime and Japanese songs streamed online, with matching YouTube video
26.) FL Studio mobile – Music sequencer app just like the real FL Studio
27.) djay – Load two songs and mess around with them just like a poser DJ lol
28.) GarageBand – Everything you need to make that music in your head come to life
29.) Guitar Pro – Reads and plays GP5 files, the next generation of tablature reading
30.) Korg iMS-20 and Real Piano II – Synth and Piano simulator with amazing versatility
31.) Seline Ultimate – Orchestra simulator, even used by a team of iPad users to play an orchestral piece!
32.) Other Games – Well, you get the idea – spend time having fun with these apps

So there you have it. I’ve only had the New iPad (3rd Gen) 16GB for about a week so I’m still in the adjustment period of using it to its full extent. Already have one or planning on buying one? Send me and all the viewers here your thoughts in the comment section! \m/

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