The topic of tonight’s #retechchat was iPad Apps.

If not already, iPads are increasingly becoming known as a must-have for all real estate professionals. From their innovative, sleek design down to their functionality for a mobile professional- I can almost hear those iPad-less drooling…

From last nights discussion, it seems that the highest function for Realtors and agents it the ability to sign documents, in PDF format, by using a stylus or even just your finger.

A quick highlight of some of the signature apps mentioned include: iAnnotate (paid, $9.99,) Docusign (free,) Penultimate ($1.99,) Sign my iPad ($3.99,) and Sign-n-send ($2.99.)

All are available in the App Market and all have slightly different functions.  I am not using any- and the vibe I sensed from our chatters was that iAnnotate was the way to go- and served as a replacement to Docusign for most agents.

(It also seems that no agent is willing to let someone touch their iPad, and why should they, so we learned about the BoxWave Stylus and the Kensington Keyfolio to keep grubby hands OFF the iPad)

Other notable apps mentioned were Zite and Skygrid, both “reader” type aggregators to follow news and social updates, similar to Flipboard.

Mindmapping was another subject of interest with SimpleMind+, MindJet and IthoughtsHD as the most mentioned apps.

Here is the text document that I saved for those who want to browse through the entire discussion: Download it HERE (best to use TextEdit on a Mac from what I hear).

Alternatively, you can view the discussion on TwapperKeeper under the #retechchat hashtag.

And lastly, if you’d like to vote for next week’s topic – that can be done here.