Apple’s flagship tablets have been inching closer to laptop-level performance, and the tech giant’s latest update aims to designate the iPad Pro as a portable production studio. Announced on October 15, Apple says the iPad Pro M5 is for “creative projects of any size” with faster performance and more multitasking capabilities.
The headlining feature on the 2025 update to the iPad Pro series is the new M5 chip, which Apple also integrated into the new MacBook Pro M5. iPadOS 26 is also behind a number of updates, while specs for the tablet's cameras and screen remain similar to the predecessor.
The new M5 chip is made with a 10-core GPU that integrates a Neural Accelerator into each core, a change that Apple says creates a significant boost in AI performance. On AI tasks, the M5 iPad Pro offers up to 3.5 times the performance compared to the M4 model and up to 5.6x faster than the older M1.
But the M5’s benefits extend beyond AI. The faster processor translates to more speed in the most intense tasks, as well as improvements in multitasking. In video editing, for example, the new iPad Pro M5 has up to 6x faster video transcode performance in Final Cut Pro compared to the M1 version and up to 1.2 times faster than the earlier M4 version. AI video upscaling in DaVinci Resolve is up to 3.7x faster than the M1 and up to 2.3 times faster than the M4.
Upgraded memory and faster access to stored files also translate to read and write speeds up to two times faster, thanks to memory that starts at 12GB (compared to 8GB) and goes up to 16GB on models with 1TB or more storage.
Apple tosses out phrases like “creative projects of any size” on the iPad Pro webpage, continuing the M4 model’s success with video editing and Multicam capabilities. Apple says the iPad can become a “versatile production studio” with the ability to connect up to four iPhones or iPads with Live Multicam in Final Cut Pro, along with the ability to shoot, edit, and share all from one device.
The iPad Pro M5’s camera array, however, carries the same specs as the M4 version, including the 12MP wide camera and compatibility with 4K ProRes video and Smart HDR stills. The selfie camera continues the 12MP Center Stage, which helps keep users centered on video calls.
Like the previous M4 model, the iPad Pro supports ProRes video at up to 4K and 30 fps, excluding the base 256GB model, and can upgrade that ProRes to 60fps when using external recording.
Apple describes the four integrated mics as “studio quality,” continuing the audio hardware from the M4 model.
Like the camera and mics, the specs for the new iPad’s display retain the specs of the predecessor, with an Ultra-Retina XDR display. Support for external monitors, however, has expanded to 120Hz, which could be a key update for video editing.
While battery life remains at up to 10 hours on Wi-Fi, the new iPad is fast charge capable with the ability to get up to 50 percent in 35 minutes when using a 60W or higher USB-C charger.
The cellular version of the iPad Pro gains a new C1X cellular modem designed by Apple, which the company says offers up to 50 percent faster performance and up to 30 percent less power consumption when using cellular data compared to the M4 iPad Pro.
The new iPad Pro ships with iPadOS 26, Apple’s operating system update announced in September. That includes a new menu bar accessible in some apps with a swipe down from the top. Background Tasks will give creators more insight by displaying the progress of exports and other intensive tasks running in the background.
The iPad Pro M5’s similar specs for the camera and display likely won’t sway many who have already invested in the M4 version, but the M5 continues to create a significant performance gap in models that are a few years old with the M1 chip.
The iPad Pro M5 will come in both 11-inch and 13-inch variants and is expected to begin shipping on October 22. Pre-orders have already opened, with the base model starting at $999 / £999 / AU$1,699 / CA$1399.
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