Whether the festive period saw you receive a shiny new iPhone, iPod, or iPad, or you have decided that you are going to invest in some new technology for your business in 2013, you will know that owning the hardware is only a small part of the mobile experience. In order to feel the full force and realise the potential of your device, you need to know the best mobile applications available. Furthermore, you want to know what they can deliver for you in terms of user experience and quality.

We looked across several categories in the App Store, and came up with this definitive list of must have apps for 2013.

Business: Square

The very best and highest aiming modern businesses are all using mobile technology and those who are retailing need a top point of sale platform to help them operate effectively. This application allows users to manage their inventory effectively, set up item descriptions and, of course, complete transactions. If you sign up for this app the developers will also send you a credit card reader, meaning you can sell on the street or at festivals, for example, and instantly e-mail the receipts to your customers.

Business: Dropbox

There is a whole range of cloud based document-sharing programs available online. Dropbox is definitely one of the best examples, despite the popularity of apps such as Google Docs and SkyDrive.

Business users can take care of their needs by setting up shared folders and file space for their professional needs, while also continuing to use Dropbox for personal documents and files, too.

Cloud based document-sharing will save you a lot of time e-mailing attachments back and forth or converting file types. If you want to set things as read only then you can do this, too.

Culture: The Poetry App

For people who feel that poetry has been consigned to the past, this application will stop all of those frustrations immediately. The Poetry App contains the works of sixteen revered poets, including Rudyard Kipling and TS Eliot, as well as essays, recordings, and other hidden bonus content that will allow you to get lost in poetry for hours on end.

There is even a tool for aspiring poets to write and record their own verses!

Science: 3D Solar System Walk

Google Earth might allow you to take a walk through Outer Mongolia or across the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu. Unfortunately, what you can’t do is take a walk through the Solar System. Now you can, however, thanks to this brilliant application that lets you visit anywhere in the Solar System and selected parts of the Milky Way galaxy.

Perhaps the best feature is the time option, meaning you can select a period billions of years ago and view what the Solar System and Earth looked like back then.

Entertainment: Netflix

Why pay your Netflix subscription just to use it when you sit at home? Okay, you might have suffered the frustration of waiting for a film or television show to buffer while on your travels, but with the advent of 4G networking, this will soon be a thing of the past.

Our only warning would be to check your mobile data tariff, as you could quickly find the costs stacking up if you aren’t connected to a Wi-Fi network.

Entertainment: Paper

This app is especially great for downloading if you are looking to show off a new iPad with retina display. Sit on the bus or train with friends and create your own digital masterpiece, or write ‘I’m With Stupid’ on it and hold it behind your unwitting companion.

Only do this with friends who have a sense of humour, however!

Food and Drink: Forkly

Most people seem to use Facebook and Instagram these days to post photos of what they have just made themselves to eat. If you have ever thought that an app purely for people to post what they have created or are eating would be a great idea, then Forkly is that app.

Post pictures of your favourite foods and rate them – just be careful of giving yourself top marks each time, remember some people may well go off and make your recipes themselves.

Games: Angry Birds

Angry Birds seem to have taken over the world. Your children probably have the pyjamas or the dressing gown, your friends’ kids may have the cushions or the duvet cover, and someone thought it would be hilarious to buy you the phone case at Christmas.

The reason all of these products are on the market, however, is that the game is truly phenomenal. Probably the first huge hit to come from iOS games is still one of the best, and unless you have completed all levels with three stars, you haven’t finished the game.

Ensure that these essential apps are on your mobile device at the earliest opportunity, and make the most of your shiny new gadget whether for business or pleasure.