New ‘chip-and-ship’ M5 iPad Pro and MacBook Pro updates set for holiday debut

Macworld

In the latest Power On newsletter, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reports that Apple is on track to release the next generation of its M-series chip. The M5 chip will make its debut with the iPad Pro, which is currently “in late testing” and is “on track” for the second half of this year. Gurman also reports that Apple will release an M5 MacBook Pro in the October/November timeframe.

Gurman refers to the M5 iPad Pro as a “chip-and-ship” model, meaning that the only major upgrade to the device will be a new processor. With the M4 iPad Pro released in July last year, Apple upgraded the display to OLED, made the device thinner, and moved the front-facing camera to the long side, in addition to the chip upgrade. That doesn’t leave much in the way of updates beyond the new chip.

When the M5 iPad Pro ships, it could be a while before the next iPad Pro upgrade. Gurman notes that Apple is already charting an M6 chip upgrade, but it won’t happen until 2027. The M6 iPad Pro will also feature an Apple C-series modem for wireless connectivity. The C1 modem made its debut in the iPhone 16e, and future versions will feature faster mmWave performance and satellite connectivity, reports say.

The M5 MacBook Pro will also reportedly be a “chip-and-ship” upgrade. The 2026 MacBook Pro, however, is rumored to feature a major revamp that coincides with the laptop’s 20th anniversary. Besides the aforementioned M6, it will also get an OLED display and a thinner design.

Gurman also mentioned that Apple is working on an M4 MacBook Air and did not mention when it would ship. The MacBook Air is on a different cycle from the MacBook Pro, shipping in the first half of the year following the MacBook Pro release. The M4 MacBook Air just started shipping a few weeks ago.

The M5 is expected to offer an incremental performance boost from the M4, likely in the range of 15 to 25 percent in CPU speed. That alone may not be compelling enough for owners of recent M-series iPad Pros and MacBook Pros to upgrade, but it will offer a significant boost over older devices.