Amazon launched a new iOS app today that will simplify the back-to-school rush. The app is called Amazon Student and makes it convenient for students to trade-in used textbooks, electronics, video games, DVDs, and more for Amazon.com gift cards. It also makes it easier for students to scan textbooks in a store to see quickly if better deals are available elsewhere.
With the new app, students can directly scan the barcodes of textbooks from their campus bookstore to compare prices. Trading in used textbooks from the previous semester is also as simple as scanning the barcode and submitting it to Amazon straight from the mobile app. Textbooks can be traded in for as much as 70 percent back.
Pre-paid shipping labels can be sent to a student’s address on file and payments for trade-ins are distributed in the form of gift cards. Additionally, it’s easy to sign up through the app for the Amazon Student program, which offers college students free two-day shipping as well as exclusive deals on student essentials.