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Good free iPad apps for the summer

Apps to help you enjoy the leisure time of summer without spending a dime.
By James Kendrick, Contributor
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Those leisure days of summer are upon us and the iPad can help while away the hours. With these 10 apps you can make the most of your free time.

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Summer means vacation and that means trips. This app will help you plan your trip to get the most fun. It has tools to help you find the best flights, hotels, and restaurants for your destination.

There are thousands of reviews from people like you to help you make the right choice.

Free

Don't miss the mobile tech coverage by James Kendrick of ZDNet Mobile News

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Whether you are planning your trip or want to know more about your landing spot, this app shows in brilliant photos everything you need to know.

If circumstances dictate you must stay home this year, don't fret. Fire up Fotopedia Heritage and take a virtual vacation through the lenses of thousands of photographers. The pictures are stunning when viewed on the Retina Display.

Free

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Summer can be a great time for learning new things, especially those things you run across on vacation. The Wikipedia is the king of knowledge for most, and this app brings it to the iPad in perfect harmony.

You can find virtually anything on Wikipedia, and it's especially easy to do with Wikipanion. Just search for your topic of interest and then prepare to lose a lot of time as you are immersed in the great information.

Free

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There are thousands of apps besides the ones on this list, and this app makes it enjoyable to find some good ones. Using App Shopper lets you find apps by category, and whether an app is free or not.

An especially cool feature of App Shopper is how it watches for price drops for apps of interest. It will even notify you on request when a drop occurs.

Free

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Summer is for vacation, and that means leisure activities. What better way to while away the hours than by reading comic books. This app has an integrated store for finding/buying comic books.

There are lots of free comics in the store so test drive the app and see how you like it. All of the classic comics are there, along with lots of modern ones.

Free

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Listening to the radio is a good summer pastime, and doing it on the iPad is as convenient as can be. This app brings hundreds of radio stations from around the world to your iPad.

Even though you can listen to stations from anywhere, TuneIn Radio is a good way to fit right into wherever your travels take you as it can automatically pull in local radio stations.

Free.

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Some people like to use free vacation time to better themselves, and if you are one of those the iPad has you covered. This app brings thousands of courses to the iPad screen at your command.

Part of the Apple iPad experience, iTunes U is a great way to virtually attend lectures on just about any subject.

Free.

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The American Museum of Natural History has a great exhibition on how bioluminescence appears in nature, especially in different animals. This exhibit is brought to the iPad by this wonderful app that presents the interesting phenomenon in a way to appeal to kids and adults alike.

Creatures of Light is an interactive app that makes the material come alive, right on the iPad.

Free

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Admit it, you will probably watch far too much television this summer than you care to admit. Since that is the case, you might as well use this app to find those rare gems buried in all of those cable channels.

The TV Guide app is easy to use and can searches can be employed to find just the program you are looking for

Free

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No matter where your summer travels take you, keepng up with your social networks is something most of use like to do. This app turns following your friends on Twitter and Facebook into a thing of beauty.

Flipboard can present the news of the day but it shines whenused with Facebook and Twiiter. Your friends' updates are presented in a magazine format built just for you.

Free

Don't miss the mobile tech coverage by James Kendrick of ZDNet Mobile News

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