Since being released in April of 2010, the iPad has become one of the most popular techno gadgets on the market today. The new Apple device weighs just 1.5 lbs and features a 9.7 inch LED-backlit touch screen that is adept at working thousands of apps. Downloading the more than 150,000 apps available from Apple including those that go along with iPad car accessories will make anything you want to do while travelling possible all at the tap of the screen.
While in essence, it is similar to a tablet computer that is designed for media consumption, Internet browsing, and gaming, as well as light content creation, with the numerous apps available the iPad can do a lot more than most tablet pc’s. To a general observer, the iPad itself looks like a cross between the wildly-successful iPhone and the company mainstay Macbook. It is Apple’s answer to the new “netbook” craze, and promises to spawn changes for the entire personal computer industry – even claiming it to be “revolutionary”, and “magical”.
There is little doubt, that the iPad is destined to be a great car accessory in itself. Many of the people who had bought one now choose to bring along their iPads when they drive, or even have them mounted in the car. Car manufacturers are trying to combat this development by including tablet-like interfaces in their products, but to no avail. Here are some of the best iPad car accessories that a person can buy for the road:
iPad Car Mount
Of course, this is perhaps the most obvious of the iPad car accessories, as it enables people to watch movies on long rides with optimum viewing positions. Installing an iPad car mount will make travelling easier as you can entertain all members of the family helping keep the peace on long road trips. Loading up a movie or songs from your iTunes account, playing the latest video games or even reading a book is easily done with your iPad. One of the best iPad car mounts is offered by ModulR, with its tasteful low-profile design and very secure headrest mounts that can be pivoted into position.
iPad Car Chargers
Keeping everyone occupied on a road trip will be effortless as the iPad boasts over 10 hours of battery life. Of course, when watching films on long trips, it is inevitable that power shortages will occur. This is why car chargers are important iPad car accessories, allowing one to use the gadget continually without fear of the battery quitting on him. Some of the common iPad car chargers are the Boxwave VersaCharger Pro, Kensington Micro PowerBolt, Griffin PowerJolt, Incase Car Charger, and Scosche USBS3, among others.
iPad FM Transmitters
Being able to connect your iPad to your car stereo is definitely a priority when it comes to iPad car accessories. Accessory options when it comes to sound are quite limited compared to what is available for the iPhone due to the iPad’s higher 10w voltage needs. If your car stereo has the necessary plugins, you can use a stereo connector cable that uses the mini port for headphones to connect to your car stereo system. If you don’t have the mini stereo port available in your vehicle then the next best solution is the combination iPad charger/FM transmitter. When picking out the FM transmitter, ensure that it meets the iPad’s higher power requirements. Check out the Griffin 2010 iTrip Auto FM transmitter as it is supposed to work with the iPad. The iTrip Auto will also charge your iPad though it will be much slower that if you were using the right 10w iPad charger.
Internet Access
Having internet access is a must have iPad car accessory as the iPad has built-in Wi-Fi capability. You can easily connect online with its 3G data services however there are over 20,000 Wi-Fi hotspots available ensuring that you can surf the web, and send and receive emails while on the go.
As this relatively new technical gadget has just been released there are not a lot of iPad car accessories available right now however there are sure to be many new accessories rolling out in the upcoming months as more vendors start producing iPad specific products.