A Free Xbox 360 for Students? IsThis a Good Idea?

Beginning May 22, Microsoft announced that any student who purchases a Windows 7 PC costing over $699 shall be entitled to a free Xbox 360 4GB console (shacknews.com). It's a limited time deal, and it does require a the purchaser present ID of being a student, but it's a really nice deal. It means a $200 item on top of you $700 PC.

Its a bold move, but Microsoft has been struggling as of late to keep pace with Apple. Apple has turned the iPad into the hottest single model of computer. In this primarily 18-24 age group, the iPad has not been as popular, so its counterintuitive to think Microsoft is trying alone to capture that audience from Apple. The iPad has been most popular in the 35-44 group, according to recent Yahoo study. For college students, a PC is more practical that an iPad for productivity reason. And while a Macbook is capable of the same, the majority of college students won't be in the position to spend twice as much for a comparable Mac.

It's not a hardware war, it's a software war. Throwing in a free Xbox console means repeat business for the large library of games these students are likely to purchase. Their is a lot of money to be made in selling software. Microsoft is example number one. That's a good idea in my book.