This is the final installment in our series on back-to-school gadgets.

Have you ever wished for a portable device that would store all your books and papers, let you take notes and also give you a chance to have some fun when the opportunity presents itself?  The iPad2 is that device, and ZooGue’s BinderPad is an iPad cover with grommets on the side that let you snap your iPad into a standard binder.  This thin, convenient pouch is just 1/2 inch thick and weights 3.5 oz with an iPad inside.  At $29.99, it’s the perfect addition to any iPad-equipped student’s back-to-school gear.

Find out more about the BinderPad on the ZooGue website.  You can also see a review in this YouTube video.

With the third generation version of the MacBook Air (MBA), Apple seems to have gotten in right. Weighing in at just 2.3 lbs with a 1.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor and 2GB of memory, the 11-inch MBA offers a lot of hardware in a small package. The longer-lasting battery provides up to 5 hours of use and perhaps best of all, the overheating problem that existed in earlier versions of the MacBook Air has been eliminated.

Many users are climbing onto the iPad 2 train, but for keyboard-intensive applications the MBA might be a better choice. Read a comparison of day-to-day use of the MacBook Air vs. the iPad 2 on the Cnet website. If you’re ready to shop, visit the Apple store.