Apple unveils thousands of apps for iPad

The batch offers a sneak peek of what's to come for the iPad and how users will be able to utilize the device, which Apple CEO Steve Jobs unveiled in January.

The iTunes store currently offers more than 2,500 iPad apps, many of which will be familiar to iPhone and iTouch users, such as Twitterific, AIM and Pandora.

The available apps cover a wide variety of categories, from entertainment and education to news and sports that, much like apps for other Apple products, range from useful to random.

Chatter from the blogosphere took aim at Apple's apparent change of heart over embargoing all things iPad-related until the device goes on sale Saturday.

"Apple, we hate embargoes too, so we think your undermining them is just great," a writer for TechCrunch said.

Comments also focused on the cost of the programs, which tend to run higher than those for the iPhone and iTouch.

The Lonely Planet Publications' "1,000 Ultimate Experiences" costs $19.99, MLB At Bat is priced at $14.99 and the diagramming program OmniGraffle goes for $49.99.

Most prices hover between 99 cents and $9.99 for programs such as Thesaurus XL, Hanoi Street Maps, Aki Mahjong, Stickies, Sex Offenders Search and ESPN Pinball. Familiar apps such as USA Today, AP and NPR are still free, so are apps for Netflix, ebay, and Yellow Pages, to name a few.