MSN is one of the most used services on the internet. As the ever growing popularity of Apple’s iPad is linked to a massive market share, Microsoft released their MSN app for iPad exclusively to UK residents in the end of January. Now that very app has been released for iPad owners and users in the USA as well as Canada.

To be honest, the MSN app for iPad doesn’t feel any different from the various other magazine style news apps available for the iPad. Google Currents, Flipboard and Pulse News are exactly the same, however Microsoft has added some unique elements and features to its application. This app will fetch the latest news about entertainment, finance, sports, politics etc from MSN network in display it in a easy to read magazine layout.

Microsoft itself describes the app as follows on the iTunes App Store:

MSN is now available on your iPad – easily swipe to find your favorite news, sports entertainment, autos and money articles & videos in one place. Easily share what you find with your friends on Facebook,Twitter or e-mail a link to the article. Of course you can view articles, photos and videos in either portrait or landscape modes with MSN for iPad. Need to dig deeper on something you just read? We’ve built Bing right into the top of the app for easy searching.

Through the MSN app for iPad, users have direct access to their Hotmail accounts. They can also use Windows Live Messenger to chat and stay in touch with their colleagues, friends and family around the world. Bing is integrated in the MSN iPad app, which allows users to search the web effectively and without having to switch to any other iPad app.

As far as the layout is concerned, the whole screen in split in to small rows through which users can flick to navigate the content. The app has been beautifully designed and it takes full advantage of iPad’s amazing screen and the touch gestures it allows. The app can downloaded right now from the iTunes App Store, for free.

Download MSN app for iPad from iTunes App Store [Official Link]

At the education event in New York City, Apple made a series of announcements that will change the education industry as we know it. Enter iBooks 2, it is the same iBooks application that we are all accustomed to, but now it comes with support for textbooks on the iPad.

It was a long time vision of deceased Apple Co-founder Steve Jobs to transform the education industry. Outdated curriculum is just one of the issues that are plaguing the education sector. Textbooks for iPad 2 is an amazing concept. It is estimated that over 15 million iPads are deployed in educational institutions all over the world. Without a doubt, Apple’s tablet is preferred by college or high school going students. With this new initiative, Apple helps to solve many of the student’s problems.

McGraw-Hill, Pearson, and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt are going to offer their textbooks via the iBookstore. Currently the first two publishers have made their textbooks available whereas Houghton Mifflin plans to bring its books online soon. These three publishers account for 90% of all textbook sales in the USA. It should be noted that these textbooks are being offered to US customers only.

Apple is focusing more on high school textbooks with majority of the books priced at $14.99 or less. It is up to the publisher if they want to offer any particular book for free. Apart from the fact that textbooks on iPad 2 are dynamic and interactive, since these books are not in print, updating them at any given time is actually quite easy. Once a book is bought, students will be able to own them forever and will get free updates as well.

iTunes App Store describes iBooks 2 as:

• Experience gorgeous Multi-Touch textbooks designed for iPad
• iBooks textbooks are filled with interactive features, diagrams, photos, and videos
• Tap to dive into images with interactive captions, rotate 3D objects, swipe through image galleries, watch videos in full screen, and more
• Use a finger as a highlighter when swiping over text in a textbook
• Take advantage of Study Cards to help you memorize important highlights, notes, and glossary terms
• Tap glossary terms to see definitions of key topics and concepts without leaving the page

Download iBooks 2 for iPad, iPod touch and iPhone [Official App Store Link]

The Apple iPad has made its lasting impression in a number of fields. As of now, the iPad is being extensively deployed in fields such as medicine, government, beaurocracy, aviation etc. Apart from that, millions of individuals around the world use and love iPad. Writers tend to be very selective about what they use, and most literary geniuses these days are sporting an iPad. Phraseology is a new iPad app that’s geared specifically towards writers.

Basically, Phraseology is an iPad text editor. It’s as simple as that. The whole app has been developed keeping simplicity in mind. There are no unnecessary features and app fully allows you to concentrate on your writing.

Phraseology also includes some tools that will help you organize and analyze your words. This new iPad app can be used for a variety of purposes. It’s great for drafting an email you want to be perfect. It’s great to get started on a new chapter of the novel you’re writing. It’s also great for drafting tweets before you send them. If you love writing and love the iPad, Phraseology app is must have for you.

Other features of the Phraseology app include:

• Manage an unlimited number of draft and archived documents
• Unique “arrange” view lets you quickly reorganize lines without cut and paste.
• “Inspect” view analyzes your text by part of speech and root words letting you navigate your document to reduce repetition and hone your language
• Calculates common readability scores, such as Gunning Fog, Flesch Kincaid, SMOG index – and statistics like average syllables per word and average words per sentence
• Integrates with Agile Tortoise’s #1 ranked iPad dictionary and thesaurus app, Terminology. If Terminology is installed, additional features are enabled to lookup and select replacement words
• Character and word counts
• AirPrint, email, export/import and Twitter integration
• Markdown support with previews and the ability to email and print formatted HTML
• Font customization

Phraseology is currently being offered at an introductory price of $1.99. At this price and keeping in mind the features offered, the app holds its value well. You can download Phraseology from the iTunes App Store by clicking on the link below.

Download Phraseology App From iTunes App Store.

Facebook is the world’s largest social network with over 800 million active monthly users from around the world. In a very short span of time, Facebook has grown to become the undisputed king of online social networks. Millions use their iPhones and iPads to access Facebook on the go and when this mammoth social network releases new features on its main site, people expect these changes to be transferred to their apps as soon as possible. Facebook recently released the Timeline feature for everyone and regardless of the fact that Timeline is available on the iPhone app as well as the HTML5 web app, the Facebook iPad app will get Timeline support in January 2012.

Only recently, Facebook released Timeline for every single one of its users. Timeline is actually a new type of profile. It places all of your interactions, photos, status updates, posts on your wall and shares on one single timeline that goes back to the day you created your Facebook account. This feature has been rolled out in the Facebook for Android and iPhone apps as well as the web app. The Facebook iPad app has still not been updated with Timeline support.

Actually Facebook was going to release an updated of its iPad app in December. This update would have brought Timeline on iPad. However when the app went through advanced testing, a number of critical bugs were found. Therefore Facebook has delayed the release of its new iPad app with Timeline support. They have not given out an exact date of release as yet but it is being speculated that the new Facebook iPad app with Timeline will be released either by mid or end January 2012.

At this point in time, we can only wait. Though it can be said without a doubt that Timeline on iPad will look absolutely fantastic, owing to the generous real estate of Apple’s magical tablet. If all the bugs are fixed in time, Timeline will be available on the iPad in January, and if not, well then expect further delays in release of the new Facebook iPad app with Timeline support.

Who doesn’t like playing games on the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch? There are a number of insanely popular iOS games that one might find on every other iOS devices. Doodle Jump is one such highly addictive game. Now the developers of Doodle Jump have released an update which takes this addictive fun to a whole new level.

Doodle Jump itself is a very simple game which takes full advantage on the gyroscope on your iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. In Doodle Jump, you guide Doodle the Doodler using some of the most subtle and accurate tilt controls in existence on a springy journey up, up, up a sheet of graph paper, picking up jet packs, avoiding black holes, and blasting monsters with nose balls along the way. Once you start playing it, Doodle Jump is very hard to put down!

In this free update the developers have added a new Ice Blizzard world in Doodle Jump which includes Chill Breath caves that you must avoid in order to abstain from freezing. There are razor sharp Icicle Platforms throughout the game that you must avoid. Monsters have been replaced with very angry penguins that try to take Doodle the Doodler out. On top of all that, to add a really realistic element to the game, developers have added Ice Blizzards as well which make it harder to see as you progress up, up and away.

Features of Doodle Jump for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch include:

• 9 incredible worlds + 3 secret easter eggs
• Broken, moving, disappearing, movable, and exploding platforms
• Jet packs, propeller hats, rockets, and springs that fly you higher
• UFOs, black holes, monsters!
• Jump on monsters to bring them down MARIO-style
• Submit score to Facebook & Twitter
• Compete agains Facbook friends!
• Global leaderboards, achievements!
• Doodle Jump: HOP The Movie secret easter egg

Doodle Jump is compatible with any iPhone, iPad or iPod touch running iOS 3.1 or later iOS firmware. The file size of this game is 19.3 MB. Although this update is free, if you don’t already have Doodle Jump on your device, you’ll initially have to pay $0.99 to purchase it from the iTunes App Store.

Download Doodle Jump Ice Blizzard For iPhone, iPad And iPod Touch [iTunes App Store Link]