iPad Accessories: Twelve South's Compass Mobile Stand

There is a secret amongst iPad users; Apple hasn't made a big deal of this secret and the legion of iPad users don't really want to talk about it. But here it is: iPad users are notorious accessory hounds! My wife is no exception (the Apple iPad case, the iPad dock, the wireless keyboard and even a stylus!), but that's just not enough for the diehard.
Well, after browsing some accessories myself, hoping to find some inspiration for a gift for my lovely, I decided to purchase the Twelvesouth Compass stand. 

A lot of manufacturers have discovered that the iPad, although a fantastic device, can be a little heavy in the hand. And furthermore, typing on the device without some kind of stand to place it at a more appropriate angle, can be a little frustrating. All manner of stands exist for it, but few are as elegant as the Compass. A sleek, steel and silicone item, the Compass has two possible positions: vertical as can be seen in the image above and horizontal (a perfect typing angle), seen below:

Being made of steel (and with the potential to damage the iPad, were it stored unprotected with the tablet), Twelvesouth was kind enough to include a fitted case to carry the stand during travel. It is unusually heavy, although it is my belief that without this weight, the stand would not function adequately. A beautiful, well made item, this is an accessory that iPad owners need to look at closely. Head over to Twelvesouth's website and see the Compass and several other great products for Apple hardware.

Some websites for iPad users

It occured to me that putting together a list of some of the more interesting iPad-related websites might actually be something really useful for my wife and her new toy. So here goes:

• Apple's iPad Site
• Magical Tablet
• iLounge
• The iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch Blog
• iPad in Canada

There are of course, several manufacturers that have already dedicated themselves to creating accessories for the iPad and one site is a great repository of review information on many of these:

• iPad Accessories

And finally, this last site is iPad-related in the sense that it provides wallpapers for iPad users:

• iFullscreen

Enjoy, iPad users (that means you, love!)

An iPad in the family...

Ever since the Apple iPad came out, my wife has been busy trying to determine if she should get one or not. I've watched her pour over reviews and comments, look through the Apple App Store to find applications she likes, browse various manufacturer's sites for accessories and so on. Well, this evening, she returned home with her very own iPad as well as the Apple dock for the device and an iTunes Store gift card!

In two shakes, the device was out of the box and after a few moments of fiddling, she was playing around with it.  I imagine that the next few days should provide some interesting first hand information regarding its use.