2010 World Factbook

The World Factbook is actually compiled and maintained by the CIA, and provides historical, political and economic information on 266 different countries. The Factbook is freely available on the CIA website but there are a number of apps that package its content in a format that is more suitable for mobile devices. I like this version from Fuzzy Peach as it presents the info very tidily – especially on the iPad version, which uses the extra room to display a list of countries on the left-hand side of the screen while using the rest of the screen to display pages of information, and small pop-up graphs and charts.

1000 Ultimate Experiences

This Lonely Planet app is disappointingly light on content – in fact, the original price was slashed within days of its launch after a barrage of criticism. It’s really just the iPad equivalent of a glossy coffee-table book, representing each of its 1000 destinations with an on-screen ‘postcard’ that provides a picture and a small chunk of text - and the very occasional video clip. However, the app’s one stroke of genius is that it organises its 1000 destinations into interesting categories such as ‘best party city’, ‘best adventure holiday’ and even ‘best places for a cuppa’. That makes it very good for dipping into and getting ideas for planning future trips.