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Get a $680 Windows utility bundle for free

This no-strings-attached bundle has all kinds of useful stuff, and you can pick and choose the items you want. Plus: a sale on the new iPad!

Rick Broida Senior Editor
Rick Broida is the author of numerous books and thousands of reviews, features and blog posts. He writes CNET's popular Cheapskate blog and co-hosts Protocol 1: A Travelers Podcast (about the TV show Travelers). He lives in Michigan, where he previously owned two escape rooms (chronicled in the ebook "I Was a Middle-Aged Zombie").
Rick Broida
3 min read

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And a Happy Easter's Day to you as well! ;)

Wonderfox Soft

Just wanted to quickly apologize for the super-rapid sellout of yesterday's deal. Usually when a vendor approaches me with something like that, they have plenty of inventory. Obviously that wasn't the case.

So let's move on to something that can't sell out! It's a software bundle, a big one, and an early Easter gift: For a limited time, Wonderfox Soft is giving away 9 Windows utilities, no strings attached.

Actually, two of the utilities -- HD Video Converter Factory Pro and Wonderfox DVD Ripper Pro -- come with optional "strings": If you're willing to share a link to the giveaway on social media, you can get a full lifetime license instead of the giveaway version (which comes without upgrades or support). To take advantage of that offer, click the green Buy Now ($0) buttons alongside each product, rather than the blue Get Giveaway Version for Free buttons.

Wondersoft's third product, Video Watermark Pro, doesn't have this option. To get it, click the Get Giveaway Version for Free link, which will download a Zip file. Open it to find a link for downloading the actual program and a license code for activating it.

That's also the process for the remaining six products, all of which come from third-party developers: Download a zipped Word document, open the document, follow the instructions therein. In some cases you may need to complete an online registration form, but there's nothing more involved than that.

Needless to say, you can choose only the programs you want; you don't have to take everything. For example, I have no need for Zoho Vault, as I'm already using a password manager. But Softmaker's handwriting fonts? Sure, I'll take those.

I'm not sure I agree with Wonderfox's math, as I don't see this bundle adding up to anywhere near $680. Seems like the items here would normally run you $20-30 each. The bulk of the remainder is probably attributable to Zoho Vault, normally a subscription-based product.

Anyway, who am I to complain? These are flat-out freebies, many of them quite excellent. The remaining utilities include Auslogics Disk Defrag Pro, Hide My IP and Ashampoo Snap 8.

As with most such giveaways, you're probably not going to get free updates, and tech support may cost extra. But if you find even one product you need or want, well, happy day!

Bonus deal: Hey, you know that new iPad 9.7, the one with the $329 list price and 32GB of storage? It's not even a month old, but there's already a sale: Staples has the new iPad 9.7 (32GB) in Space Gray for $299 shipped (plus tax where applicable). Not a huge savings, but kind of a surprising one given the newness of this model. I think it's the first time a full-size iPad with 32GB has been priced this low. And, so help me, an iPad is still the tablet I reach for when I reach for a tablet.