There are plenty of Android tablets available on the market, ranging from 7-inch models all the way to the 10.1-inch big-hitters. And most of them have access to Google's Android Market.

Wading through all of these applications can be a bit of a mission though, so we decided to pick a few essential apps for you.

Pulse

Our number one choice for current affairs, Pulse aggregates news from a variety of sources, ranging from general news and politics to technology and entertainment.

Besides the neat user interface and the ability to customise feeds, Pulse also caches articles for offline viewing, making it great for those long trips.

Amazon Kindle

Although ebook readers have been available on smartphones for a long time, it's better suited to the larger tablet screen. So it's a no-brainer that Amazon's Kindle app should be featured.

The Kindle application is the storefront to Amazon's ebook store, offering hundreds of thousands of works as well as free books. And with best-sellers costing $9.99, this is a great alternative to physical copies.

Opera Browser

Routinely featured on our essential app lists, the Android version of the Opera Mobile web browser is arguably the best of the bunch.

Besides the much-vaunted data compression/speed boost, Opera also lets users save web-pages for later viewing (no need for Instapaper, Read-It-Later or other apps).

Lookout Security

Although malware for Android tablets isn't widespread, it's still a great idea to get some protection in the form of anti-virus programs. And Lookout is one of the more popular options on the Android Market.

Lookout protects your device against malware and performs automatic backups. But possibly the best feature is its tracking capability, which is invaluable if you've lost your tablet.

Dropbox

Whether you need to transfer photos or get that PowerPoint presentation from your tablet, Dropbox has proven to be an invaluable tool for many users.

Dropbox offers users 2GBs of cloud storage, with apps available for almost every device platform. The Android tablet app is noteworthy as users can edit files, save them for offline viewing and much more.

SwiftKey Tablet X Free

One of the worst things about any tablet is the lack of a physical keyboard (at least, out of the box), but there are a few apps out there that try to alleviate issues.

One of the more effective apps is SwiftKey Tablet X, which splits the software keyboard in two for effective thumb typing. Additionally, the app also features advanced language prediction. We recommend trying the free version first before splashing R43 on the full version.

Plume

While the official client, TweetDeck and Seesmic get all the Twitter love on Android tablets, Plume is another neat app worth your time.

This beautiful app has a simple multi-window screen which features your timeline, direct messages and mentions. Other than that, all of your usual bells and whistles are supported, such as multiple accounts and photo uploads.

Springpad

While apps like Remember The Milk and Evernote have all garnered popularity for their note-taking and memo abilities, Springpad takes things up a notch.

This nifty and free app lets users write notes and tasks, while also letting you post media content such as photos and audio clips. But possibly the coolest feature is the ability to add nearby stores (along with a map) for shopping trips.

MX Video Player

Although the default Android tablet video player is pretty adequate, you'll want to switch to the more full-featured MX Video Player.

This app makes use of multi-core processing to keep everything smooth, while also playing back MKV files and subtitles.

MapDroyd

Although Google Maps, preinstalled on Android tablets, is a fantastic mapping solution, offline functionality isn't its strong-point. So that's where MapDroyd steps in.

MapDroyd lets users download maps of individual countries, making it a great choice for tourists and those out without data connections.