Free Xbox 360 Deal: Students Get Help With Downtime

Sending a new college student off to school with a computer is so time-honored, I myself -- some 20 summers ago -- was gifted with a new computer (a Tandy desktop). I think it cost about $1,000 in 1991 dollars and stayed with me through four years of school, a double major and a 72-page honors thesis.

These days, computers cost a lot less in nominal dollars, are way, way cheaper in real dollars, and, if you purchase one that costs at least $699 between May 22 and September 3, 2011, from a participating retailer with a student ID or an .edu email address, you'll get a free Xbox 360 in the bargain. (If you don't want the Xbox 360, you can get 10% off your purchase instead -- a substantially less valuable perk unless your chosen computer is high end, indeed.)