So...I got an iPad.

Well, my parents got it, really. It seems like my dad got our mortgage to be cheaper or something and went on a spending spree yesterday. He also got a plasma TV.

Only thing is...my parents don't how to use an iPad, and I'm not sure what to use it for. I've been downloading free stuff like games, Ted Talks, weather, books, GPS, that kind of stuff. However, I'm...not too sure what I can use this expensive hunk of plastic for, though.

Are there any cool free apps I can get (or...well, I suppose I can jailbreak it, but I want to see how I can use an iPad first, and I'm not supposed to be talking about that here lol)?

I assume it's one of those things that you just think of uses for it the longer you have it and the more you understand the product. If i had one i would use it for things i use my phone for...but it's huge...so...

I mean, right now my sister is playing games on it in the bathroom. I really can't think of anything to use it for at home that I can't do on my laptop. Forget bringing it to school or work. The only conceivable thing I can think of is to bring it on a road trip somewhere to be mildly entertained or to get free books.

Watch youtube, surf the web, talk on IRC, play games (angry birds no?) Watch movies if you have Netflix, skype, or just read. It is much simpler to chill in bed or on the couch with an iPad than a laptop.

My brother has one and he mainly surfs the web. There are some pretty neat ipad games out, but they drain the battery real quick (at least on my ipod they do).

I think the main point to a tablet is to replace a laptop/netbook where graphics processing isn't intensive. Not that laptops handle graphics well, but yeah.

get legendary wars

its a lot of fun, and its free.

I do most of anything on mine. Read news, my RSS feed, play all kinds of games, do my reports, surf the web obviously, chat with friends, etc. I mean mines 3G so it goes everywhere with me but it'd still be useful nonetheless.

Infinity Blade II tomorrow. Oh my gawd yay.

I know some people that bought a little stand for it in the kitchen and use it to view recipes while cooking. Just don't spill anything on it!

Honestly I use mine for university. It's pretty usefull.
Things you can do with it? The main things I use it for besides taking notes are reading the news and reading books. I also got myself a few documentaries. (there's a free Mythbusters Ninja special that you can download if I'm right)
Especially with the eurocrisis and all I find it fun to watch the stockmarkets as the day goes on as well for 10-year bond yields. Bloomberg has a free app that keeps track of the more significant ones for free (it also shows from which time the last update was).

I'm not sure if this is concidered advertising. If it is, it was not my intention to do so.

They make great coasters.

Far easier to use it to surf the web than a hulking overheating laptop.

I use mine for a far more specific task. My parents have a device called EyeTV in their house 2000 miles from my house. It's connected to their cable. Using the EyeTV app on my iPad, i can watch any normal cable channel from their house directly over the internet. Add in the fact that i have an AppleTV2, and i can then airplay said channels straight to my TV. This comes in handy when i would like to watch Red Wings hockey games since i live in Arizona and i obviously dont get their broadcasts here.

Otherwise, it makes a nice device to watch Netflix on that doesn't clog up my screen and resources on my laptop when trying to accomplish other tasks.

It's basicly a giant iPhone.

I got my BF one. He uses it for ....

-Watching netflix movies in bed
-Surfing the internet
-Helping the students in his physics lab (he has a stylus, can photograph their work, make notes on it, then email the pdf to them)
-Remote logging into his desktop to play his favorite mmo (which requires little to no attention)

He also brought it home with him over shorter breaks; easier to deal with than a laptop in the airport, and longer battery life. Good on airplanes, too.

I use it for magazines, watching movies, etc. It's a cool device.

Can't wait for Windows 8, though. I have an Asus EP121 and I really want the tablet environment to be married to the windows environment in a better way........