3 Things You'll Need to Go with Your Apple Tablet

I have my doubts as to whether the Apple tablet -- which gets announced tomorrow! -- will ever amount to anything. I certainly don't envision it as any kind of business tool, and I think the rumored $700-range price tag will make non-fanboy consumers think twice before pulling the trigger.

That said, whatever the iPad/iSlate/iDon'tCareAnymore turns out to be, early adopters (I'm looking at you, Dave) will almost definitely need these three items to go with it:

1. Grip pads If the tablet is anything like the iPhone or iPod Touch, it'll be shiny, smooth, and slippery as hell. To avoid accidental -- and potentially fatal -- drops, slap on a few of those gripper pads available for cell phones. Egrips makes a few universal kits (some of which are clear, so as not to ruin the tablet's aesthetics) that would probably cover the bases.

2. A stand I suspect the tablet will find a home in kitchens as a Web appliance and on coffee tables as an overpriced photo frame. In both cases you'll need some kind of stand to prop it up. My advice: Head to your nearest craft store (or even dollar store) and buy a little tabletop easel or photo stand. Shouldn't cost you more than a few bucks.

3. A bubble mailer Accessory makers will undoubtedly come out of the woodwork with pricey leather cases, but here's a cheaper solution that may just thwart potential thieves: "bubble" mailers, those padded envelopes that run about $1.29 at office-supply stores. Call me crazy, but remember those MacBook Air commercials with the big envelope?

What accessories do you envision needing for the Apple tablet (aside from lots of extra cash, that is)? And how long do you think Dave will wait before ordering one? Two hours? One? My bet: 30 seconds.