So you flew and bought an iPad, you live outside of the US, and you would like to buy iBooks, Pages, Numbers and Keynote (as well as many other amazing apps) from your own country, huh? After all, as Scoble said, “the iPad without apps is pretty lame, actually”.
Well, welcome to the club. Here’s a couple of tips to get you started and buy applications that are only available in the US:
- First, I assume you have a valid iTunes (App Store) login for your local store, whichever the country. You can browse and buy iPhone applications in iTunes in the Mac where you usually synchronize your iPhone or, now, your iPad.
- The App Store on the iPad is meant to choose and buy iPad applications; however, currently only the US App Store allows to “browse” those applications. To browse and buy applications in the US App Store you need an account… without credit card information! Apple has published a support article that contains all the required information to do this.
- Using the account created in the previous step, you can buy all free iPad apps available in the US App Store. This includes the amazing iBooks app, which I strongly recommend you to buy. However, without credit card information, you cannot buy paying apps. However, you can buy them from iTunes in your own country. The trick is to search for them in the search engine :) that’s it! Even if you cannot browse for iPad apps, that does not mean that they are not there; many of them might just as well be available in your country, right now! To find them, just search them using their name in the search box, and buy them with your local country App Store (iTunes) account. Yup, you can do this. Then, sync your iPad with your Mac, and you’ll have those apps installed in a snap.
- However (there’s always a “but”) you cannot buy Pages, Numbers or Keynote for iPad this way, because Apple has not yet released those apps in other countries than the US. For that, you can buy an iTunes gift card! I have bought two 50$ cards with this company, and they just rock! I know other 4 people who used their services with 100% satisfaction, so go on, and as soon as you receive the e-mail with the gift card codes, enter them in the App Store in your iPad (not in your Mac, OK?) and you’ll be able to buy the three productivity apps, plus a couple of games, why not?
You can now sit on your couch and enjoy your iPad full of apps!