However, the iPod's screen was too small to showcase his food. In comparison, the iPad, with its 9.7-inch high-resolution screen, is just the right size.

He sees the device as a valueadded service for customers.

"When we have one iPad per table, kids can watch videos and play games on them," Mr Munidasa told my paper on the phone.

It also makes things easier for customers who have trouble reading the menu's fine print as they can enlarge it, he added. The device also helps him cut costs, as he does not have to print paper menus for daily specials.

In fact, he is exploring the iPad's potential as a source of revenue. For instance, hotels and banks could place advertisements on the iPad menu.

Noting that his customers have been pleasantly surprised by his digital menu, Mr Munidasa quipped: "People are freaking out whenever they see it...it hasn't been launched in Sri Lanka yet."

Over at New Jersey in the US, another entrepreneur - this time, a professor - is also using the iPad for work.

Mr Eric Greenberg, assistant visiting professor of marketing at the Customer Relations Management (CRM) Research Center at Rutgers University, said the entire syllabus of its digitalmarketing course will be preloaded on an iPad from July 19.

About 90 students in three classes this year will each pay a US$4,995 (S$7,043) enrolment fee and get an iPad with the course material.

While "there will be many missteps along the way", he told my paper in an e-mail: "We have to experiment with its use to explore its impact and potential."

In Tokyo, Japanese magician Shinya Uchida is also revolutionising the iPad by using it as a prop in his show.

Several YouTube clips show him executing illusions, such as pouring milk into an iPad, drawing money out of it like at an ATM and even using the tablet as a portal from which a pigeon and another magician appears.

The clips, first posted late last month, have drawn more than two million views so far.

Uchida told my paper in an e-mail: "Combining both technology and magic enhances the realm of entertainment."

He added: "Whenever there is a new technology or a new combination of existing technologies, people will naturally explore how to connect with others by using it."