Apple iPad Apps for Social Media and feed aggregator users
Apple iPad with the iOS platform supports a large number of apps that makes it a very attractive platform. Read this article to find iPad apps that are meant for social media and content consumption.
iPad apps services such as Facebook and Myspace were integral to the iPad's success, but since it was originally launched in early 2010, there have been many other forms of social media integration.
In fact, some new forms of social networking and content consumption formed with the iPad in mind as the major device to take full advantage of such services.
However, as Apple fans we should really ask ourselves: is social media and content consumption the same thing? The answer is yes and no. Some social media like Twitter involves writing and creating content for other users to consume. However, the latest models of iPad even have a camera built-in. This means that all sorts of multimedia can be combined in order to create social media content and share it across networks. Flipboard app on iPad
An example of iPad services created with the iPad in mind from the get go is Flipboard. This is an iPad app that can be found on the app store and allows users to browse websites, social media outlets, and RSS feeds as if they were reading a magazine. It was originally launched just for the iPad, although now it exists as a universal app with iPhone compatibility as well.
Flipboard allows you to add social media profiles or RSS feeds in separate windows that can be browsed and read as if you are flipping through a magazine. You will be using your finger to flip through pages back and forth this way. You can even have your own section of Twitter and post content right from this window.
If you see content you like from other users, simply share it or retweet it from Flipboard.
RSS feeds read the same way and you can click on links to the main articles that open up right from Flipboard's browser. It is hard to describe this experience just with words. If you own an iPad, you owe it to yourself to check Flipboard out.Twitter app on iPad
There are a number of iPad Twitter apps available offering a wide range of features, although my personal recommendation is to use Twitter functionality from Flipboard or Tweetbot. This is a Twitter app that really excels in terms of features. It offers multiple timelines so you can quickly switch between lists.
It also offers smart gestures, syncing timeline positions, customizable navigation and support of multiple other social media services. You can attach photos or videos very easily with this app.
You can even e-mail conversations or post links to them with integration to Storify (in conversation view). These are just some features to look for from Tweetbot. However, using Flipboard as a twitter client is also great.Skype app on iPad
Although Skype isn't a social network per se, it is a phone service with social networking features. The iPad takes Skype to the next level by offering constant messaging, webcam services, chat, and phone features integrated into one device.
Skype is a great service for those of us who do not own 3G/4G iPad models and want phone features from a Wi-Fi connection. Although Skype has existed as a service for a number of years now, it is an app that is constantly being updated on iPad.
What makes Skype standout on the iPad as compared to other mobile devices is the screen real estate is perfect for video calls. Being able to move around and talk to friends while standing up is great. You can for instance show them your work environment or a museum you are visiting right from your iPad.
The display is nice and large so if they show you their location, you can see clearly. Unlike Facetime from Apple, it is also compatible with PC users, users of other devices, or mobile phone users. You can even call local phone numbers from Skype as long as you purchase credits.Facebook app on iPad
Although Myspace was once popular, it seems that the user experience was never satisfactory enough for it to pose a long term threat in social media circles.
Facebook is now the king to the type of social media content Myspace was famous for, but what makes Facebook so much better is how it is based on connectivity through friends rather than random strangers.
This makes it more personalized and intimate rather than random. It also means that user profiles have less garbage or graphics on them that may annoy some people, and is based on interaction.
The official iPad Facebook app is now here and it works just as well as you can imagine. You can send updates, upload and share photos, send messages to friends, or share other online content you find with other users.
The benefit of using the iPad app over the browser-based Facebook is that it is designed to work around the lack of Flash. It is designed to be efficient and integrated with the tablet, so you don't have to worry about random crashes or slowdowns in the same way as when going to the browser version. You can also play various games on Facebook and the browser version requires Flash for them.RSS Feed Readers app on iPad
There are a number of other apps that make Web browsing, social media consumption, and RSS feed reading a breeze — besides just Flipboard. An example of an app centered on this task is Reeder. This is a great app that allows you to read articles from your favorite websites and blogs without dealing with ads, clutter, or Flash.
Just connect and consume the content you want to consume. Like Flipboard, Reeder is integrated across social networks. It allows users to share articles via an in-app e-mail, save to Zootool and post articles onto Twitter or Facebook.
However, Twitter is special in the way users can customize exactly what social media content they want to look along with RSS content; as well as how it reads in a magazine form. Reeder, on the other hand, is a great RSS reader with some social media file sharing options available. It is also integrated with Google Reader.
There are many other examples of great RSS reader apps for the iPad. Another RSS reader for the iPad that can be found on the App Store is called Feeddler. This app allows you to efficiently browse through unread content or save it for later reading. You can add, delete, or rename subscriptions to feeds as well as the folders they are being displayed from. It is also great for offline reading with articles being saved locally.
What makes this app interesting is it also offers social media integration and sharing, but you can even mark RSS stories as unread and share them to social networks even when offline. The sharing will synch when an online connection appears. Notes and comments are also supported.Taposé - Collaborative Content Creation app
Another interesting and new app that recently came out with content consumption as its function is Taposé. This app was designed by the ill-fated Microsoft Courier tablet and based on a dual-windows view. It was finally approved by Apple after a long hiatus of changes that had to be made.
It offers its own social media, Web, and multimedia integration, but it is designed to be a journal. Users create journal entries that take as many pages as they want and they can later share or show them to friends. This is a new form of social media interaction and sharing that was made possible with the iPad — of course after Apple finally approved the app.iPad and Mobility
The reason that the iPad makes such a great social media tool is that it is a device that is incredibly mobile. Compared to most laptops, the iPad can be opened and turned on in an instant and as long as it is within a distance of a Wi-Fi network, it can be used to consume social media anywhere. The size also makes it much more practical and enjoyable than the iPhone or other even more mobile devices. That is why it is the perfect medium for social media.
The light form factor, combined with long battery life, instant connectivity, and easy connectivity to social media or online networks, makes it the ideal device for travel. It also makes it the ideal device for both content consumption and interaction with other users or friends.iPad and the web
The iPad is also a device perfectly suited for the Web. Like Flipboard, there are many apps that combine Web browsing with social media and allow users to quickly tweet or like an article they see through an RSS feed. This form of interaction allows the sharing of ideas and content to flourish. Web browsing and RSS content consumption are now tied to social media more than ever.
Most blogs offer automatic tweet capabilities and iPad users are known to fully take advantage of this feature. This is because unlike most traditional PC devices, the iPad allows users to stay signed in constantly to social media networks. When a PC is turned off, users have to sign back into Twitter or other social media, while the iPad is a device more users keep in sleep mode longer.
The iPad also offers a wide range of Web browsers, with Apple's Safari being at the helm. However, some other offerings like Atomic Web Browser, offer offline browsing options. This makes content consumption possible even when Wi-Fi networks are not present like on planes or during long car rides in the mountains with not even a 3G network available to connect to.
Of course, traditional PCs and laptops also offer offline savings of Web pages or browsing, but the iPad experience is seamless and streamlines for the consumer. There are generally no additional plugins to download or complicated instructions to weed through.
There are even some apps, like Offline Pages, designed for this purpose in mind all onto themselves. However, the key difference is mobility, comfort, instant connectivity, and the iPad always being with us if we want it to.
Another great app for later offline viewing is Insta paper. This iPad app is integrated with many other apps and is highly recommended if you are offline a lot and use your iPad. It allows you to save long articles and read them at anytime throughout your day, although this is a feature mentioned in some other apps as well. What makes Insta paper stand out is its integration with other apps and services and how it saves Web pages in text only format. Conclusion
The iPad offers unparallel user access across social media networks and integration across different forms of social media through the use of apps. Apps like Flipboard transform this experience into something that was never really done or attempted before.
This is where the future of computing and integration across the Internet is heading. The iPad represents this direction with social media tools being integrated to form a unique experience to each user. Because of all the different apps available for a single service like Twitter, each user will have a different experience with the service.
The iPad is the perfect device to consume social media right now. Sure, there are some downsides some users may experience like memory constraints of the original model or typing speed with touch-only input, but for the most part the experience is truly unique and far ahead of what it is on other devices.
Very nice article with detailed information of iPad apps. What is the latest model of iPad phone available in the market and what is the price of same.