Apple M5 Refresh: Faster MacBook Pro, iPad Pro and Vision Pro
Apple has rolled out fall hardware updates across several major product lines powered by its new M5 chip. This isn’t a design overhaul, but Apple says the M5 brings measurable performance gains for the MacBook Pro, iPad Pro and even the Vision Pro headset.
The headline: Apple claims the M5 features a 10‑core CPU, 10‑core GPU and a 16‑core Neural Engine, built on the same 3‑nanometer process used for the M4. According to Apple, the M5’s single CPU core is the company’s fastest yet and can deliver up to ~20% faster multithreaded performance versus the M4.
- MacBook Pro: M5 model starts at $1,599 and retains the same chassis, weight and 70W adapter as the prior model.
- iPad Pro: Apple claims the new M5 iPad Pro delivers more than 4× peak GPU compute versus the M4 and up to 6× faster video transcoding compared with the 2021 M1 iPad Pro. Price: 11″ from $999, 13″ from $1,299.
- Vision Pro: now using the M5 chip and offering a new Dual Knit Band; Apple says battery life improves by roughly 30 minutes versus the original model.
While these updates are largely iterative, they should matter to creatives, video editors and anyone who relies on GPU- and ML‑heavy workflows. The M5 appears focused on balanced gains across CPU, GPU and neural workloads rather than a radical redesign.
For official details, see Apple Newsroom. For hands‑on impressions and benchmarks, publishers like Engadget have published early coverage and tests (search publishers for full reviews).
Key takeaways:
- M5: 10 CPU + 10 GPU cores, 16‑core Neural Engine, same 3nm process as M4.
- Apple claims up to 20% faster multithreaded CPU vs M4; significant GPU and video-work improvements for the iPad Pro.
- Pricing remains in line with prior models; no major design changes announced.
Is the M5 refresh enough to upgrade? If you do heavy video editing, 3D work, or ML inference on-device, the performance boosts could be meaningful — otherwise, it’s a modest but useful generational step.
Discussion: Will the M5’s performance gains persuade you to upgrade your MacBook or iPad Pro? Share your thoughts below.