It’s no secret that Apple had its M5 chipset in the oven for some time, and now it has called us down to the dinner table. The menu consists of new M5-powered devices, including the iPad Pro, MacBook Pro, and the refreshed Vision Pro headset. The devices have yet to arrive for pre-order locally, though judging by the local iStore’s handling of this year’s iPhone 17 lineup, we don’t reckon South Africa will have to wait long.
As ever, the M5 iPad Pro is available in 13in and 11in models. While the M5 chipset is the standout upgrade, which Apple claims offers “up to 3.5x the AI performance” compared to last year’s M4 model, the device also sees the addition of the N1, as well as the C1X cellular modem. Owners of the M4 iPad Pro won’t be too jealous of the minimal upgrade, with the device targeting those who with older M chipsets in their tablet.
Putting the M5 iPad Pro through its paces
Part of that is due to the return of the gorgeous but not what you can call ‘new’ Tandem OLED display Ultra Retina XDR, which arrived in last year’s iPad Pro refresh. The cameras, too, have been left untouched in the M5 upgrade, with the same 12MP shooters fixed to the device’s front and rear.
It didn’t take long for Apple to pat itself on the back in its announcement, claiming that the M5 chipset features the “world’s fastest CPU core.” It utilises a ten-core CPU layout — four performance cores and six efficiency cores. It’s coupled with a ten-core GPU, with a dedicated neural accelerator in each. That all translates to more capable AI powers, as well as “up to 1.5x faster 3D rendering with ray tracing”.
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It also offers support for VRR on compatible displays, with the device outputting a 120Hz refresh rate when hooked up to an external display. Apple has also bumped the RAM, with the 256/512GB models arriving with 12GB standard, while the more expensive 1 and 2TB models reach 16GB. Charging also sees a bump that matches the iPhone 17, promising a 50% charge in 30 and 35 minutes in the 13in and 11in models, respectively.
Now for the not-so-fun bit. Pricing remains the same in the States at $1,000 for the 11in and $1,300 for the 13in. Grabbing a model with cellular capabilities will run you $1,200 and $1,500, respectively. These will arrive on shelves overseas on Wednesday, 22 October, with South Africa likely to follow suit, though official pricing is still to be determined. We’ll keep you in the loop when that happens.
