Apple just dropped the iPad Pro M5, delivering a 3.5x AI performance leap over last year's M4 model. The new flagship tablet starts at $999 and ships October 22nd, targeting users still running M1-era devices rather than recent M4 buyers. Beyond the chip upgrade, Apple packed in faster charging, new cellular modems, and Thread connectivity - signaling the company's push to make iPads true laptop rivals.
Apple just made the iPad Pro even more of a laptop killer. The company's latest flagship tablet now packs the M5 chip, promising 3.5x faster AI performance than last year's already-impressive M4 model. But this isn't just a processor swap - Apple loaded the new iPad Pro with connectivity upgrades that hint at bigger ambitions for the tablet category.
The M5 iPad Pro starts at $999 for the 11-inch model and $1,299 for the 13-inch version, both available in classic black and silver. Pre-orders go live today with devices hitting stores October 22nd. Apple's official announcement positions this as an upgrade cycle for users stuck on M1-powered Pros or older hardware, rather than a must-have for recent M4 buyers.
The real story here isn't just raw processing power. Apple quietly stuffed advanced connectivity into this refresh. The cellular version now features Apple's C1X modem, while all models get the new N1 chip handling Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Thread networking. That Thread support is particularly interesting - it's the same smart home protocol Apple's been pushing across its ecosystem, suggesting the iPad Pro could become a more central hub device.
Memory performance got a boost too, with faster read and write speeds that should help push that M5 silicon harder. Apple also finally addressed charging speeds, promising 50% battery in about 30 minutes. That's laptop-class charging for a device that increasingly competes with MacBooks.
The timing makes sense given Apple's broader iPad strategy. The May 2024 M4 redesign brought OLED displays, a thinner chassis, and completely revamped accessories like the Magic Keyboard. That was the hardware foundation. This M5 update is about the computational horsepower to run Apple's AI ambitions.
With iPadOS 26 enabling nearly laptop-style multitasking, the iPad Pro is shedding its tablet training wheels. Apple's been saying for years that iPads are the future of computing, but the software never quite matched the hardware's capabilities. That's changing fast.
