iPad Pro (2025) to be powered by 2nm M5 processor for Apple Intelligence servers
The breathtaking upgrade that the Apple iPad Pro got this year - tandem OLED display, M4 chip and all - will be considered brave enough for Apple to only up the chip speed in the next upgrade cycle.
Reputed Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claims that this will indeed happen next year, when Apple is back to its usual iPad Pro upgrade period of 18 months. This means that Apple will be issuing iPad Pro 2025 models in the fall, run by its upcoming M5 processor powerhouse.
What to expect from the Apple M5 chip?
Well, Apple has reportedly been developing the M5 processor since last year, taping it out together with the mobile A19 Pro chipset that is supposed to power the next-gen iPhone 17 series.
Apple could be first in line as a client for TSMC's cutting edge 2nm process node, on which both the A19 Pro chip for the iPhone 17, and the M5 processor that features the foundry's new Small Outline Integrated Circuit (SoIC) packaging.
The M5 chip made with the SoIC packaging can be 3D-stacked for less leakage and enhanced thermals compared to the current designs. The chip's power envelope will be so advanced that Apple is reportedly readying it not only for the iPad Pro (2025) models, and Mac computers, as usual, but will also power Apple's own AI servers that will be responsible for carrying out Apple Intelligence tasks.
That will be a huge upgrade in processing power for the iPad Pro 2025, and we can reasonably expect an even deeper Apple Intelligence dive from the tablets than what their siblings are capable of now.
Needless to say, the signature tandem OLED screen that doubled the lifespan and brightness of the iPad Pro (2024) panels will be there to stay on the 2025 models, perhaps with some enhancements like using newer OLED technology generation for the stacks. In any case, the M5 chip will be the star of the holiday shopping show around this time next year.
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