Today’s best deals: HBO Max subscriptions, Apple iPads and more

It’s time for a new Dealmaster. Our latest roundup of the web’s best tech deals includes a limited-time promotion on HBO Max subscriptions. Currently, new and returning customers of the video streaming service can get a 30 percent discount on a one-year subscription if they prepay for the 12 months. This brings the ad-free version of the service down from $150 to $105 (or just under $9 per month) and the ad-supported tier from $100 to $70 (or just under $6 per month). The promotion technically went live a few weeks ago, but HBO Max says the deal will be available until October 30.

To put the offering in context, new HBO Max owner Warner Bros. Discovery recently began removing content from the service as part of a major cost-cutting campaign, going so far as to include high-profile features such as batgirl before their scheduled release. Last month, the company also announced plans to merge HBO Max with streaming service Discovery+ by the summer of 2023, though it hasn’t made it clear what that service will cost or how the merger will affect existing subscribers. So the promotion here seems to be a way of curbing subscriber losses and retaining more customers for the coming year.

That said, this is still a pretty significant discount. And even after shedding dozens of titles, HBO Max still has plenty of valuable binge eating, including Ars-approved series like Hacking, Are dark materialsand The white lotusnewer well-reviewed titles like The rehearsal and Game of Thrones precursor House of the Dragonand famous dishes such as The Sopranos, Sex and the cityand Control your enthusiasm. If you’re not tired of the plethora of streaming services clamoring for your attention these days, or if you’d like to give the service a try, this is a great deal. Please note that the offer cannot be used to renew an existing membership.

In addition, our collection also has similar promotions for competing services such as Disney+ and Peacock. And if you’re up for streaming as is, we’ve also got lower-than-usual prices for Apple’s iPad and iPad Mini, Wacom drawing tablets, gaming monitors, and tons of video games, among other well-reviewed tech gear. As we write this, we’re also seeing stock available for a PlayStation 5 bundle, although that could change soon. In any case, you’ll find our full curated list of deals below.

Ars Technica may earn compensation through affiliate programs for sales of links on this post.

Featured offers of the day

enlarge / Apple’s AirPods Max aren’t cheap and have their design quirks, but they continue to provide excellent audio and noise-cancelling quality for wireless headphones.

Jeff Dunn

Electronics Deals

Laptop and Desktop PC Deals

• Asus Zenbook 14 14-inch laptop (Core i5-1240P, 2880×1800 OLED, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD) for $550 ($700) at Best Buy
• Lenovo Yoga 6 13.3-inch 2-in-1 laptop (Ryzen 7 5700U, 1920×1200, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD) for $700 ($850) at Best Buy
• Apple MacBook Air (2022, Midnight) 13.6-inch laptop (Apple M2, 2560×1664, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD) for $1,099 ($1,199) at Amazon, B&H
• Apple MacBook Pro (2021) 14.2-inch laptop (Apple M1 Pro, 3024×1964, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD) for $1,599 ($1850) at Best Buy
• Apple MacBook Pro (2021) 16.2-inch laptop (Apple M1 Pro, 3456×2234, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD) for $2,099 ($2,265) at Amazon, Best Buy
• Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 2 12.4-inch laptop (Core i5-1135G7, 1536×1024, 8GB RAM, 128GB SSD) for $600 ($685) at Walmart

• Microsoft Surface Pro 8 13-inch Tablet PC (Core i5-1135G7, 2880×1920, 8GB RAM, 128GB SSD) + Surface Pro keyboard for $900 ($1,025) at Microsoft
• Lenovo Legion 5i Pro (Gen 7) 16-inch gaming laptop (Core i7-12700H, 2560×1600, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD, GeForce RTX 3070 Ti GPU) for $1,599 ($1,950) at Walmart
• WD Black SN850 (1TB) PCIe 4.0 SSD with Front Heatsink $110 ($145) at WD, Newegg
• ViewSonic Elite XG270Q 27-inch gaming monitor (2560×1440, IPS, 165 Hz, G-Sync) for $260 ($375) at Amazon, Target, Best Buy
• Gigabyte M32QC 31.5-inch gaming monitor (2560×1440, VA, 165 Hz, VRR) for $230 ($305) at Amazon, Newegg
• Gigabyte M32Q 32-inch gaming monitor (2560×1440, IPS, 170 Hz, VRR) for $300 ($390) at Amazon, Newegg

enlarge / Microsoft’s Surface Pro 8 isn’t for everyone, but our review called it the “best Surface for people who love” Microsoft’s line of well-designed Windows PCs. Keep in mind that a Surface Pro 9 could be announced in the coming weeks.

Andrew Cunningham

TV and home entertainment deals

enlarge / LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga is a light-hearted and easy dispatch of the nine main lines Star Wars movies.

Warner Bros. Interactive entertainment

Video Game Deals

Accessories and various offers