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iPad Pro 13-inch M5
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Clara’s Verdict
Very GoodStunning tablet with desktop power, but the price tag makes it hard to justify unless you're actually creating on it.
Best for: creative professionals, video editors, designers, serious iPad users
Skip if: casual users, budget-conscious families, Netflix watchers
Ethan’s Verdict
Very GoodExceptional hardware meets mediocre software justification, making this a hard sell at flagship pricing.
Best for: Video editors and designers with existing Apple workflows, Professionals needing portable workstation-class performance
Skip if: General consumers, Students on budgets, Anyone primarily doing web browsing and email
Clara’s Pros & Cons
- +OLED display is stunning and vibrant
- +M5 handles professional creative apps
- +Thin, light design feels premium
- +Apple Pencil Pro support is excellent
- −Very expensive for casual users
- −iPadOS still has workflow limitations
- −Needs accessories to be practical
- −Overkill unless you're creating
Ethan’s Pros & Cons
- +M5 performance handles pro-level creative apps
- +13-inch OLED display is genuinely beautiful
- +Thin, lightweight design for portability
- +Apple Pencil Pro integration is solid
- −iPadOS still limits hardware potential significantly
- −$1,299 price is hard to justify versus M4
- −Requires expensive accessories for full functionality
- −Camera system feels neglected
Score Breakdown
Performance9.015% wt
Display9.020% wt
Camera7.010% wt
Battery Life8.015% wt
Design & Build8.020% wt
Software & Features7.010% wt
Value5.010% wt
Score Breakdown
Performance9.025% wt
Display9.018% wt
Camera6.08% wt
Battery Life8.012% wt
Design & Build8.010% wt
Software & Features6.017% wt
Value5.010% wt
Clara’s Full Review
Real Talk About the iPad Pro 13-inch
Let's be honest, this is not a tablet for most people. It's a tablet for people who actually need a tablet, and that's a much smaller group than Apple's marketing suggests.
The M5 chip and OLED display are genuinely impressive. Tech reviewers consistently praise the performance and screen quality, and they're right. If you're a video editor, designer, or digital artist, this thing will blow your mind. It runs professional apps like Final Cut Pro and Procreate without any hiccups. The display is beautiful enough that you'll actually want to spend time looking at it, which matters when you're color-grading or doing detailed design work.
But here's the thing: if you're buying this to replace your laptop or to watch Netflix in bed, you're making an expensive mistake. Yes, it has more processing power than many laptops. Yes, the screen is gorgeous. But you're paying $1,299 for features and power that most people simply don't need. It's like buying a truck when you need a sedan because the truck has a better engine.
The design is genuinely nice, though. It's thin, light enough to hold for extended periods, and feels expensive in your hands. The Apple Pencil Pro support is a big deal for anyone doing digital art or note-taking. And the battery life is solid for all-day work sessions.
Where it gets frustrating is the price combined with iPadOS limitations. You're paying premium money for a device that still can't do everything a laptop can do. Multitasking has improved, but it's still not as flexible as a traditional computer. If you need a device that's truly powerful and flexible, you might actually be better off with a MacBook Air, which costs less and gives you more freedom.
So who should buy this? Creators who specifically want to work on a tablet. Designers, video editors, digital artists, and professionals who've chosen iPad as their creative platform. For everyone else, you're paying for luxury you won't use.
The verdict is simple: it's an excellent tablet, but an expensive one. Make sure you're actually going to use it for what it's built for.
Ethan’s Full Review
The iPad Pro M5 is Powerful, But Pricing Doesn't Match Reality
Apple's 13-inch iPad Pro with M5 is technically impressive. The chip delivers laptop-level performance, the OLED display is genuinely stunning, and the industrial design remains elegant. But here's where I get skeptical: Apple is charging $1,299 for a tablet that still runs iPadOS, a mobile operating system that fundamentally can't leverage this hardware's potential.
Let's talk performance first. The M5 absolutely crushes creative workloads. Final Cut Pro, Photoshop, DaVinci Resolve, all run smoothly. For video editors and designers already committed to iPad workflows, this is the fastest tablet money can buy. But that's the qualifier: you need to already be in the Apple ecosystem and comfortable with iPad's constraints. If you're not, you're paying a $400 premium over the M4 for marginal real-world gains.
The display deserves credit. OLED on a 13-inch tablet is a smart move for color-critical work. The contrast and brightness are excellent, and creatives will genuinely appreciate the upgrade. That said, this is one of the few areas where the price premium feels earned. A quality iPad Air display would handle 90 percent of tasks just fine.
Here's what bothers me most: iPadOS limitations. You get a desktop-class processor but can't manage files like a desktop. Multitasking is still constrained compared to macOS. You'll drop $1,299 and still need a Magic Keyboard ($349) to approach laptop productivity. At that point, you're at $1,650 for a device that still can't do everything a $1,200 MacBook Air handles. That's poor value math.
The camera system feels like an afterthought. 12MP and LiDAR are fine for document scanning, but they're not why you'd buy this. Apple clearly didn't prioritize camera development here, which is fine, but it highlights where the focus actually is: specs over practical features.
Battery life is solid and reliable, which is expected at this price point. Design is premium but iterative. Nothing here is bad, but nothing screams innovation either.
The real question: who actually needs this? Video professionals with existing iPad workflows and deep pockets. Designers doing serious work on a tablet. For everyone else, the M4 iPad Pro saves you $400 for nearly identical daily performance. That's the smarter buy.
Specifications
| ram | 16GB |
| camera | 12MP Wide + LiDAR |
| weight | 579g |
| display | 13" Ultra Retina XDR OLED |
| storage | 256GB-2TB |
| processor | Apple M5 |
Overall Rating
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Head-to-Head Comparisons
Review History
Initial review from real source data
Initial review from real source data
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