So Many Apps! So Little Time!

With iPads and Apple TV sweeping the campus, many faculty are trying to just keep up with what's happening in the app world.  If you turn to your colleagues and ask them what are their favorite apps, each one will likely provide you with a list of their top picks.  So the question becomes, how do I really know what's out there and available?

While the ProfHacker in The Chronicle of Higher Education will periodically publish a piece on iPad apps, eliciting recommendations from its readers, there are also a few web sites that I have found particularly helpful when exploring the wonderful world of iPad Apps.

One can always turn to the Apple iTunes Preview Apps Store or iTunes for Education through your favorite browser for lists of popular educational apps.  Not to be outdone, Google Play also has its site which can be browsed for apps for android devices. Excellent descriptions of each app is available with a simple mouse click. 

PadGadget (http://www.padgadget.com/ ) is the self-proclaimed “…premier iPad focused website for iPad news, apps and accessory reviews.”  While the site is not specifically focused on educational technology, those of you who want to know what's happening in the wonderful world of the iPad will find this web site appealing.  It is a great site for to help you keep up with what is happening in the iPad world and the latest apps and gadgets that you can use to extend your iPad's functionality.  In addition, the Apps Tracker tab allows one to filter the top 200 apps by category and cost.  The results can be sorted by number of downloads, rating, trends, etc. Clicking on any app in the list will pop up a more detailed app description. You can also follow PadGadget on Twitter.

Another excellent site, EducationalTechnology and Mobile Learning, provides several pages with links to iPad resources, Ed Tech Resources, and a number of other tools for educators.

Happy exploring!