The first day of college can be a bit overwhelming. For many, it's their first time away from home, away from parents, and old friends, and a chance for a fresh start. With that in mind, we've come up with 10 must-haves for college students to begin their year with more independence.
1. An Amazon Student Prime Subscription Gives You Free Two-Day Shipping & Free Entertainment
If you find yourself ordering textbooks from Amazon.com more often than not, an Amazon Prime subscription is a necessity. You can rent Kindle etextbooks for up to 80% off, or you can buy or rent print textbooks for up to 70% off (and ship rentals back for free).
Students can get an Amazon Student Prime subscription for half-price at $39 a year. (You actually don't have to pay anything for the first six months.) With the subscription, you'll get free two-day shipping on most items, exclusive promotions and offers just for students, and unlimited instant streaming of over 40,000 movies and TV episodes. You can also borrow Kindle books for free with an Amazon Prime subscription. Right now, you have the ability to earn $10 credits for each friend who signs up via your referral link shared through email and social media.
Don't forget - right now, you can join the Amazon Student College Cash sweepstakes when you sign up for Amazon Student, and possibly win $30,000.
2. The Samsung Galaxy S4 Is Way Better Than An iPhone
The days of iPhone dominance are starting to wane, and we are especially like the Samsung Galaxy S4. Not only is it gorgeous, but it comes with quite a few amazing features:
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4. Protect Your Smartphone With A Personalized Case From Casetagram
Now that you've got your new smartphone, it's time to protect it with a case. Don't settle for the normal, boring cases; you can choose to make a much more personal statement. Go to Casetagram, choose a layout, and upload personal photos from your Instagram or Facebook account to create a unique, personalized case. You can also choose from the collections submitted by others. And the cases are all only $39.95.
If you fancy yourself a great designer, enter the Casetagram challenge this month for a chance to win up to $2000 worth of prizes, and for a chance to have your design featured in the Artist Collection.
5. A Samsung Smart TV Gives You Better Entertainment Options
Smart entertainment gives you more of what you want. This Samsung 50" LED Smart TV is currently retailing for under $1,000, along with free shipping if you order directly from Samsung. With it, you get three HDMI inputs, a full web browser, S-Recommendation, which allows you to customize your content and preferencs, and Smart TV, which helps you discover more of the entertainment you love.
6. Decorate Your Walls With Your Instagram Photos On Instacanvas
The best way to make your dorm feel like a home is to surround yourself with familiar things. What could be more familiar than your own Instagram photos, turned into wall art? At Instacanvas, you can turn the memories captured from Instagram, Facebook, Flick, Picasa, or Dropbox into artwork for your walls. Turn them into museum-quality canvas, framed prints on archival photo paper, or a custom one-inch thick acrylic photo block, starting at $39.95.
7. Stock Up On Snacks & Drinks With A Mini-Fridge
Let's face it - the dorm cafeterias aren't going to be open all night, and there's no good reason to go to the vending machine for overpriced snacks and sodas every day. Make your life easier with a mini-fridge. This Danby 1.8 Cubic Foot Mini-Fridge came highly recommended on Amazon.com for its compactness, its ability to keep food really, really cold, and a scratch-resistant work top that lets you clean up spills easily.
8. Stay On Top Of Homework & Studying With A New Laptop
A laptop is practically a requirement to be successful in college these days. They're preferable to a desktop, since you can tote your laptop with you to the library or to a cafe to do your homework or work on projects. Luckily, great laptops are very affordable, and many of them can be found on sale for under $500. This Toshiba Satellite 15.6 inch laptop is well-reviewed for its speed, specs, features, and price. It's retailing for only $329.99 on Amazon.com.
9. Get Microsoft Office To Get Your Projects Done Effectively & Efficiently
Microsoft Office is still one of the most reliable office programs, and is well-suited to term papers, essays, and any other projects you might have to work on for your college career. Other alternatives such as Google Drive may be free, but they aren't as full-featured as Microsoft Office, and you do not want to rely on a spotty Internet connection to print out your five page essay due the next day. You can save 20% on the Microsoft Office 365 University Edition for Windows & Mac at the Academic Superstore. Save a little bit more with promo code 5OFF50BTSACS to get 5% off your purchase of $50 or more.
10. Get Cheaper Textbooks At Skyo
Textbooks are the bane of college life. They're a required expense, yet often unaccounted for in budgets. Textbooks are also notoriously difficult to sell back to colleges, as some places refuse to accept old editions of textbooks. That's where Skyo comes in. Instead of purchasing your textbooks, you can rent the printed or digital texts for a specified period of time, and return them when you're done. (Are you really going to need the Econ 101 textbook ten years from now? Probably not.) You'll also get free standard two day shipping for both rentals and returns.
It's even easier to save - when you buy two books, you save 5%. When you buy four or more books, you'll save 10% on your order. When you use promo code SKYOCHEAPBKS, you'll save an additional 5% on your order.
