While Game Pass has long been a no-brainer for a lot of people, that’s about to change for those who have heard the news that Microsoft is bumping the monthly price up an astonishing 50%, from $20 a month to $30 a month. That’s a massive price change, and one that a lot of people aren’t going to want to pony up for.

Well, if you want to keep the subscription going but don’t want to pay the new price, you can currently get your hands on three months of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate for $57, which is 5% off the current price. If you get a couple of these, you’ll be saving a fair amount of money in the long run. We don’t know how long this deal will last, though, so act fast if you want to avoid missing out.

In the article about the price hike, CNET’s Zachary McAuliffe said, «Microsoft is likely hoping gamers appreciate having a larger gaming catalog and more choices. But depending on how much (or how little) time you have to game, the extra $10 a month for Ultimate may make you rethink your subscription.» I agree that this price hike, while coming with some extra benefits, may be a difficult pill to swallow.

Hey, did you know? CNET Deals texts are free, easy and save you money.

Several writers and editors of the CNET team, including me, have jumped on grabbing some of these codes while we still can. Amazon is bound to update these soon, and I don’t want to miss out on saving some money on a service that I genuinely use daily, but will struggle to justify at $30 a month. We also have several other Game Pass deals if you feel like trying a different level.

Why this deal matters

Game Pass Ultimate gives you access to a massive library of games and the ability to play a lot of those games streamed to your phone or tablet. It was a fantastic price when it came out at $15 a month and a good deal at $20 a month.

Is $30 still a good deal? I don’t know, but you can try and get ahead of it with these discounts. This may even end up being my pick for the best Prime Day deal without really even being a discount at all. 

Tim Cook’s 65th birthday is on the horizon (Nov. 1, to be exact), and with the Apple CEO’s special day looming, talks have allegedly been building within the company regarding his potential successor. To be clear, Cook has made no official public mention of retirement or stepping down. But according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, the tech giant is working behind the scenes to ensure a seamless transition when the time comes.

Cook replaced Steve Jobs in 2011, and after a period of uncertainty, Cook ushered Apple into its most profitable era. Stock-watching website Stocktwits reports that the company’s stock increased about 1,800% since Cook took over leading the company.

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Jobs may have introduced devices like the iPhone into everyday use that changed how we interact with technology, but Cook expanded on the Apple experience. Under his guidance, the company built upon Apple’s smartphone by introducing subscription services and more mobile products, including earbuds and wearables.

He introduced Apple Pay, Beats headphones became part of the company’s ecosystem, the Apple Watch launched 10 years ago, and Apple even entered the entertainment business, producing original Oscar-winning movies and Emmy-winning TV shows through Apple TV Plus.

When Cook steps down, whoever is handed the keys has some big shoes to fill.

Read more: Best iPhone in 2025: Here’s Which Apple Phone You Should Buy

We should reiterate that the notion of Cook stepping down is pure speculation at this point. We don’t know what Apple’s CEO is currently planning or what his thoughts about retirement may be. That said, there are a handful of contenders who have reportedly been part of the succession conversation. 

Potential Apple CEO replacements

John Ternus, Apple’s current vice president of Hardware Engineering, was top of Gurman’s list. Ternus has been with the tech giant for over two decades, so he has the knowledge and experience for a chief executive upgrade. There would be value in having an engineer behind the wheel. 

Ternus appeared during the September Apple event to introduce the iPhone Air. At 50, he’s the same age Cook was when he took over as Apple CEO.

Other potential contenders are also being considered, including Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of software engineering; Greg Joswiak, Apple’s senior vice president of worldwide marketing; and Jeff Williams, the company’s former chief operating officer, according to a report by Apple Insider.

Federighi has been with Apple for a long time and has the public speaking experience — frequently speaking during Apple Events — that would be vital if he replaced Cook as CEO. Considering his current role, Joswiak has a more marketing perspective and a broader overview of the company and may not be as hands-on with the tech as Ternus and Federighi. And according to Gurman, Williams was viewed as a shoe-in to be Cook’s replacement until his role as COO ended in July. (He’s now Apple’s senior vice president of design, watch and health.) Cook held the position of chief operating officer before he replaced Jobs as CEO in 2011. Sabih Khan is now in that COO role, which also puts his name in the running.

When Cook steps down, Apple will undoubtedly have a pool of qualified talent to choose from to take up the leadership mantle. Who exactly will take the mantle remains to be seen.

Apple didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Snapchat is capping the storage limit for its Memories feature, the company announced last month. The feature has gained tremendous popularity since its 2016 launch, and Snapchat will eventually require users exceeding the new 5GB cap to pay for additional storage. 

Snapchat users exceeding the new limit aren’t required to start paying immediately. You have a full year to sort out your existing storage situation. This gives longtime users time to delete expendable memories or export them for free to avoid the fee. The year of temporary storage begins when you first exceed the 5GB cap. 

If you do need the extra storage, you’ll need to pay $2 per month for 100GB when you exceed the limit. If you’re already signed up for the $4 per month Snapchat Plus or the $16 per month Snapchat Platinum plans, you’ll have 250GB and 5TB of Memories storage included, respectively. A Snapchat spokesperson said these prices are for the US and may vary depending on the market. 

Option 1: Save Memories to your Photos in batches

If you’re looking for a way to save your Memories to your camera roll, it’s easy, but there’s a limit on how many you can save at a time.

• Open Snapchat and tap the Memories icon (stacked photos) to the left of the camera button.
• Tap Select at the top.
• Select up to 100 Snaps from the carousel.
• Tap the Export button (arrow up icon).
• Select your save destination and then tap download.

Option 2: Request your Snapchat data

If downloading all of your Snapchat Memories in batches of 100 sounds like something you’d rather avoid, and don’t mind a wait, you can request to download data from your account. The result will be available in a ZIP file that you can download to your computer and use to view your Memories. 

• Open Snapchat and go to your profile.
• Tap the settings icon (gear) at the top right.
• Scroll to select My Data.
• Choose the data you want to download.
• Tap Next.
• Choose a time frame (All Time is an option).
• Tap Submit.

The amount of data in your account determines how long it takes to receive the file. When it arrives, download the zip file and access your data.