While the recent rash of online shopping toolbars promises to look for the cheapest price of a given item, a new twist in toolbars has developed. This time, the deals can actually help you save for your children's college tuition bills. A new shopping toolbar from Upromise, Inc. was announced today, helping Upromise members save even more money for college while they shop online. The browser-based toolbar is reportedly the first of its kind, and allows for easy navigation of Upromise’s more than 350 online retail partners, as well as easy access to information about college investment savings plans and a constant reminder of the user’s Upromise account balance.

"Not only can Upromise members easily search Upromise’s site for merchants and products, but the toolbar also allows users to search the Internet through Google," says Upromise in a written statement. "Unlike other products, this toolbar allows its users to search for millions of items sold by Upromise partners – from realtors to sweaters – that earn shoppers money back in their Upromise accounts. The toolbar also provides easy one-click access to special offers and discounts offered by Upromise retailers, often offered exclusively to Upromise members.

Upromise is a service that partners with various retail, utility and other consumer-related companies that offers automatic "rebates" to registered users when a certain product or service is purchased. For instance, if you are a member, have your credit card and store discount card registered with the service and shop at the large supermarket chain Stop & Shop, you will get a set amount placed into your account by purchasing selected items. For example, if you buy a package of Land-O-Lakes cheese slices for $4.49, you receive a contribution of 13 cents into your Upromise account from Land-O-Lakes. Over time, your purchases add up and you can invest the money in your Upromise account into a 529 college savings account.

"Our mission at Upromise is to help families save more money for college, and this toolbar is helping us to do just that," said David Coppins, vice president of the online mall for Upromise. “The new Upromise toolbar allows our members to find the best products at the best prices, and serves as a reminder that our members can save for college through their everyday online purchases."

Upromise says toolbar users are able to access the best deals offered on all Upromise partner products available through the Upromise Web site. Users can also read reviews about products they are thinking about purchasing through reviews offered through Epinions.com.

The Upromise toolbar is available at www.upromise.com/toolbar and is offered to new members during the registration process; existing members can also find the toolbar offered at the Upromise Online Mall. Currently, the toolbar is only supported on Windows Internet Explorer 6.0, but the company says support for Firefox is coming soon.

Devin Comiskey is the Managing Editor of ECommerce-Guide.