Why You Can Trust CNET Buy one Skinit skin, get one free
Add some colorful artwork to your smartphone, laptop, tablet, or other device--then grab a second skin to give as a gift.
Morning, deal fans! A quick housekeeping note: I hope you'll join me again today for CNET's Holiday Help Desk, which airs live at noon PT. (Occasionally the show kicks off a few minutes late, so if it doesn't start exactly at the top of the hour, stay tuned!)
Speaking of holiday help, still trying to find the perfect gift? I'm a longtime fan of "skins," which are fancy decals for everything from laptops to smartphones to MP3 players. My daughter, for example, adorned her iPod Touch with a supercute puppy; my son plastered his with a "Phineas and Ferb" skin.
Today only, Skinit has a buy-one-get-one-free deal when you use coupon code DAY12BOGOALL at checkout. (WRAPUP will apparently work as well.)
Just order any two skins for any two devices; you'll get the second one (of equal or lesser value) free. Shipping adds $2.99, unless your order totals more than $30, in which case it's free.
Skinit offers a huge selection of designs for just about every flat surface known to man: desktops, USB drives, even routers and musical instruments. Categories range from art and animals to colleges and sports. (I'm seriously tempted to grab a Michigan State University skin for my Nook Color.) You can also create your own design using a browser-based tool. Neat stuff.
I've ordered numerous products from Skinit and have liked them all. The decals are thick vinyl (meaning they won't easily tear), colorful, and fairly easy to apply. Best of all, they leave behind no residue when you remove them--a plus if you ever decide to sell the skinned hardware.
This BOGO deal is one of the best I've seen from Skinit. I think these make great gift items--and the smaller skins fit nicely in stockings!
Bonus deal: Back on Cyber Monday, I wrote about cash-rebate site Ebates offering double the cash back. Well, it's at it again: today only, you can get double rebates from more than 500 stores. It's calling it Cyber Monday 2. Don't have a free Ebates account? Feel free to use my referral link, wink wink.
Bonus deal No. 2: For what promises to be a limited time, Iolo Technologies is giving away System Mechanic for Windows. This system-tune-up utility, which normally costs $49.95, has earned top marks from sites like PC Magazine. FYI, I received my "payment" confirmation right away, but 45 minutes later I'm still waiting on the e-mail with my download link and license code. Update: Iolo is no longer giving away the $49.95 Standard version, but rather just the free version that's available all the time.
Bonus deal No. 3: Today only, Amazon has the Corona Indie Bundle (Android) for free. I first wrote about this five-game bundle back in October, when it was a whopping 99 cents. Don't let the price fool you; these are some terrific games!