Suzanne Choney / msnbc.com
Fling Joysticks for iPad.
By Suzanne Choney
Yes, the iPad has over 140,000 apps. But did you know you can put it on a leash? Put it on your leg? Wear it like a purse? Give it balls (to protect it from short drops)? Attach a bicycle-like horn as a speaker?
These and other crazy-but-useful iPad accessories were shown at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas:
A leg up
Sometimes you might find yourself out and about with your iPad, and even though you have a case for for it, you have no way to hold it ? your arms are full of other goodies or a baby or a small doggie whose canine Martha Stewart tote bag you left at home.
Suzanne Choney / msnbc.com
Enter the Grip Pad, a non-slip pad that you attach to the back of the iPad, then attach just about anywhere on you. Its most-likely use is for slouchy couch potatoes, splayed out on the sofa with iPad propped on bent knees ? using Grip Pad, you don't need a case or anything else to prop the iPad once the non-gummy Grip Pad is put on the back of the iPad.
Wrapsol, maker of the Grip Pad, says it works because it's made from a "non-slip tactilla material," one the company has patented. The Grip Pad's measurements are 8.25 inches by 3.75 inches. It costs $14.95, and is available at Staples. There's also a medium-size version ($9.95) for smaller-size tablets like the Kindle.
Suzanne Choney / msnbc.com
Leash me in
Here's another out-and-about scenario, or one where you may not want to schlep a case, but you do want to have your iPad with you: Put it on a leash like the iCat holder, made by EK USA Ekcessories, which produces industrial-strength goodies.
This cat has two hooks at the end of the leash that lock into the iPad's USB port, and I know what you're thinking because I was thinking the same thing when I saw it: How is that going to work without ripping up my USB port and/or the iPad dropping like a stone? It didn't.
The leash holds up to 43 pounds ? more than enough for iPad 2's 1.35 pounds (for the Wi-Fi plus 3G model) or the original iPad's 1.6 pounds for the same model.
It costs $24.99 and is available from Amazon, as well as EK USA Ekcessories. You can use it, of course, with your iPhone or iPod Touch, and there are other similar models available that give you the option of putting your device on a retractable reel (iCat Reel It) or the iCat Hang It (a shorter leash), both of which clip to a belt loop.
Suzanne Choney / msnbc.com
Suzanne Choney / msnbc.com
The iPad purse (and stand)
You can carry your iPad like a Hermes purse, and look even chicer; this one comes in eight colors, and the purse option is just one use for it.?
Made for iPad 2, the tablet just clips into place into the holder's rubber rings.
But wait, there's more: The OmniStand, one of several made by Kiolink, can also be used as a stand in portrait or landscape mode by moving the handle around.
Colors are: Orange, green, light blue, pink, red, black, gray and navy blue.
It's $60, and will be available in April from the Skymall catalog, or visit Kiolink's website.
Suzanne Choney / msnbc.com
An iPad with protective balls
This shock-absorbing harness for the iPad is the perfect add-on for when the tablet is in little ones' hands, where it stands good odds of being dropped (although if you have a sibling or spouse who you don't trust with your iPad, this isn't a bad idea for them, either.)
It can safely?be dropped from 6 feet?? although it's not meant to survive a 100,000-feet plunge or thrown against a wall like some protective covers.
Four shock-absorbing balls, made from EVA foam rubber, the same material used in flip-flops, fit over the corners of the iPad and are held in place by an adjustable elastic cord. If the iPad is dropped ? and the "if" is really "when" ? the tablet itself never touches the floor or any sticky surfaces or spills.
iBallz founders and friends Derek Michael and Lee Doerr came up with the idea. Both loved their iPhones and were excited when they heard about the iPad coming out in 2010.? Both had dropped and broken their phones, and the cracks were in the corners of the screen, "and I thought if I can break this small thing, what am I going to do with this big thing?" said Doerr. Thus was born the idea for iBallz, which adds just 3 grams of weight to the iPad.
Available at Amazon or from iBallz itself, iBallz comes in grey, black, pink or turquoise, and costs $19.95. There are separate versions for the iPad and iPad 2; as well as iBallz "minis" for the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, Kindle Fire and other tablets.
Fling it!
No, don't fling the iPad, but if you like playing games on it and are missing the console experience, Ten One Design's beautifully designed Fling Joystick for iPad provides auto-centering and force feedback.
Suzanne Choney / msnbc.com
The Fling for iPad, made of smooth, anodized aluminum and a tough, clear and flexible engineering-grade resin. won an Innovations Design and Engineering Award at this year's CES.
Ten One Design says it designs "each product from the ground up. Usually it starts with sketches on paper (seriously, paper)."
The Fling for iPad costs $19.95 for one Fling, or $29.95 for a two-pack. It comes in Ice, Ninja and Ultraviolet colors. (There's also a Fling Mini for iPhone, iPod Touch, or Android devices ? $24.95 for a two-pack). Flings can be ordered from Ten One Design.
The Horn Stand
Suzanne Choney / msnbc.com
?Maybe you want a break for your earphones, but don't want to blast your music using more powerful speakers. Enter The Horn Stand for iPad 2, which gives your tablet an old-timey, bicycle kind of horn that just snaps onto the iPad and ups its sound by 16 decibels.
The Horn Stand, made from silicon, also doubles as a stand for the iPad, both horizontally and vertically.
It costs $30, and is available at Best Buy. It's made by Fruitshop, and doesn't require any additional power to run. It comes in pink, gray and black; there are also Horn Stands for iPhone and iPod Touch.
iOstand
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Does this remind you of an old beloved friend (hint: the iMac G4 from 2002), especially with a white iPad in horizontal mode as shown here? From iOmounts, its iOstand uses a patent-pending, ferro-magenetic sphere and magnetic carrier to let you latch and slide your iPad onto it, then swivel the tablet around as you need to. When the stand and the tablet are combined, they do look a little like a sleeker iMac G4, but in tablet size.
Tamas Kovacs, co-inventor of the iOmounts system, says he thinks the iOstand has the potential to become the "standard? for mounting electronic devices in hotel rooms, airports, lounges, classrooms, training facilities, hospitals and conference rooms ? any place where visibility, ease-of-use and convenience are consideration."
The iOstand comes in stainless steel ($109), as well as in a White Powdercoat and Black Powdercoat version (each $89).
It can work with other tablets, and there's a smaller model? the iOmini ? for the iPhone and other smartphones, as well as for handheld game consoles. The stands are available from iOmounts.
Beanpad Portfolio
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Wilson Rothman / msnbc.com
Beanpad Porfolio by Vantage Point
Your iPad need never touch a surface using the Beanpad Porfolio ($79).
Vantage Point's previous Beanpads have been good for curling up on the couch or using from bed, or even in a car. The beanbag sits well on most surfaces, and its vibration-dampening effect makes it especially nice while on the road with one. You can go horizontal or vertical with orientation.
But unlike the previous Beanpads, the Portfolio model needs no mount. Instead it has a leather case with Velcro backing, so you're getting both the bean bag and a case that can be used separately, so it's a true two-fer.
Beanpad Portfolio is available at some electronics stores, including Fry's, and from Vantage Point.
Suzanne Choney / msnbc.com
Tablet Teddy Bear
We saved the cutest for last: Tablet Teddy Bear($60) lets your child use the bear's tummy and paws (which have anti-skid material) to hold the iPad in place. On the back of the bear is a removable backpack for storing the tablet, and there's a carry handle for the backpack.
The bear come in blue, pink and brown.
Creator Dean Theodore, a pediatric occupational therapist, has similar soft and cuddly options ? dog, cat and monkey Tablet Pet Pals ($50), as well as smiley-face Tablet Bean Bags ($40), which include slide-in compartments for the tablet and a zippered pocket for earphones, cellphones or other goodies.
They're all soft and cuddly ? something that, as great as the iPad is, it is not.
Related stories:
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