using a brand-new MacBook Air. Apple continues to bring out its line of M4 CPUs, which is just around the corner. But that hasn’t stopped speculation from increasing about the upcoming M5 chip, which will arrive later this year, along with all the benefits it could bring.
Wondering what that might entail? You’re in the right place as we’ve put together everything we know about Apple’s M5 chip, from the Macs it’s coming to and the performance you can expect to what’s rumored about the high-end chips on the M5 roster. Read on for all the details.
Price and release date
There is many Apple products in which the M5 chip could arrive, including Mac and iPad. Since the M5 will be Apple’s entry-level chip when it launches, it makes sense that it will likely appear in most of Apple’s entry-level Macs, along with some iPads as well.
The first product the M5 is expected to get is the macbook prowhich will likely launch in fall 2025. Apple tends to update its MacBook Pro in October or November, so expect the same again this year.
We can wait for iPadPro We will also have the M5 around this time, or perhaps a little later. Bloomberg journalist Mark Gurman believes that the iPad Pro M5 will appear in late 2025 or early 2026so there is a chance that it will arrive right after the MacBook Pro. iPad air is another candidate for the M5, although there has also been talk that Apple could opt for the next-generation M3 chip.
Next on the list is the MacBook Air. Apple is expected to equip it with the M5 in spring 2026, about 12 months after launching its next M4 version this year. And we could also see an M5 iMac in 2025: This computer has recently followed a roughly two-year release cycle, with versions released in April 2021 and October 2023. If this continues, there will likely be a new version in 2025, although we can’t be sure when in the year. that could happen.
Then there is the mac mini. This was modified in both 2023 and 2024, suggesting that a 2025 version could be on the cards. But at the same time, Apple skipped the M3 chip in the Mac mini, giving it the M2 and then the M4 instead. That means it’s not certain whether Apple will choose to release an M5 version or not; We’ll have to wait for more information in the coming weeks and months.
As for the price of the M5 chip, it depends on the device it comes with. We expect Apple to keep the prices of its M5 products the same as their last-generation predecessors; Apple does this often, although it is by no means guaranteed.
Performance and features
Since we are still a long way from the launch of the M5, it is difficult to get details on the expected performance and features. Still, there are some details that have been floating around.
On the one hand, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has predicted that the M5 will be manufactured using technology from the company TSMC. third generation N3P process. This should translate into performance and efficiency improvements over the M4. Still, it’s a 3nm process rather than the more advanced 2nm alternative that some sources had been predicting, with the rationale being that the 2nm option is apparently still too expensive for Apple’s tastes.
TSMC’s process for the M5 will reportedly involve the company’s System on Integrated Chip (SoIC) technology, which allows chip components to be stacked on top of each other in a three-dimensional design. This is expected to improve temperatures and reduce electrical leakage.
M5 Pro, M5 Max and M5 Ultra
The entry-level M5 isn’t the only chip we’ll see in the next generation of Apple silicon: Apple will also be working on mid- and high-end chips for its more advanced Macs.
According to Ming-Chi Kuo, the M5 Pro and M5 Max should launch in 2025, followed by the M5 Ultra in 2026. Based on previous patterns, we will probably see the M5 Pro in the MacBook Pro and Mac mini, the M5 Max in the MacBook Pro and Mac Studioand the M5 Ultra in Mac Studio and mac pro.
One interesting implication of the M5 Ultra is that it could mean the Mac Studio and Mac Pro get annual updates, like the M4 Ultra is expected to this year. That’s something none of the Macs have ever had.
While it’s too early to know what kind of cores, performance, and features these chips will include, Kuo believes that all of these mid- and high-end M5 chips will use a “server-grade” 2.5D package to improve performance and thermal performance.
Additionally, Kuo says these chips will come with “separate CPU and GPU designs,” which could provide a performance boost compared to the current design. Lastly, according to Kuo, these chips will be “better suited” for artificial intelligence (AI) inference.
