Apple’s affordable MacBook Neo, iPhone 17e, M5 Pro/Max-equipped MacBook Pros and the M4 iPad Air went on sale Wednesday. The M5-powered MacBook Air and new Studio Displays also hit retail stores today.
Apple began accepting preorders for these devices last week, shortly after unveiling them.
The recently introduced high-end M5 MacBook Pro may be a spec bump update before the M6 models bring radical new changes. But before you commit to sitting this generation out, you should know the M6 models will likely come with some caveats.
An all-new design with new features (like a slimmer chassis and touch screen) usually brings with it an all-new price that’s higher than before. If you’re holding out for the M6 Pro or Max models, you may be waiting for longer than you expect. And if you’re just getting the base model, well, the rumored changes may not come at all.
This isn’t pure speculation; Apple has a proven track record of pulling all these tricks. Here are three reasons why the M5 MacBook Pro may actually be the better choice for you.
Apple’s just-announced MacBook Neo as well as the new M5 Pro/Max-equipped MacBook Pros, M4 iPad Air, M5 MacBook Air and iPhone 17e are now available for preorder. The new Studio Display and Studio Display XDR are also available to order starting Wednesday.
All devices will start shipping and hit retail stores starting March 11.
As of Tuesday, Apple has refreshed its entire MacBook lineup with M5 silicon. And while the new machines bring meaningful upgrades across the board, buyers should brace for higher prices than last year.
Whether you’re eyeing the new MacBook Air or the pro-grade MacBook Pro, here’s a breakdown of what to expect at every price point.
Apple’s long-rumored M5 Pro- and M5 Max-powered MacBook Pros are finally official. The new laptops look visually the same, but pack updated internals that promise a massive leap in performance.
“MacBook Pro with M5 Pro and M5 Max redefines what’s possible on a pro laptop, now up to 4x faster than the previous generation,” said John Ternus, Apple’s senior vice president of hardware engineering, in a press release Tuesday.
Apple’s best-selling laptop got even better with Tuesday’s launch of the M5-powered MacBook Air. It features no major design changes, but it sports a faster processor than before, adds storage capacity and shifts to Apple’s N1 chip for improved connectivity.
“The new MacBook Air with M5 brings incredible performance and even more capability to the world’s most popular laptop,” said John Ternus, Apple’s senior vice president of Hardware Engineering. “With M5, MacBook Air powers through a wide range of tasks, from everyday productivity to creative workloads, and is even faster for AI.
“Now featuring double the starting storage, as well as Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6, in a sleek and durable design with long battery life, MacBook Air is the perfect laptop for anyone who values the unrivaled combination of performance and portability,” he added.
UPDATED: As expected, Apple launched the MacBook Pro with M5 Pro or M5 Max processors on Tuesday. Learn all about it:
The whole point of upgrading the MacBook Pro with the new M5 Pro or M5 Max processors is to boost performance. Although Apple has yet to announce the new high-speed chip variants, we can still make solid estimates of the increase to be expected. Spoiler alert: WOW.
Here’s the hefty CPU and GPU performance jumps to expect from the upcoming M5 Pro and M5 Max processors.
The M5 iPad Pro is the most powerful Apple tablet ever, with a chip many Mac models don’t have yet. There have been deals on it before, but it’s never been more affordable than it is right now. That’s because Amazon knocked $200 off the cost of the 11-inch version. And you can save on the 13-inch variant, too.
UPDATE: This deal was so successful that Amazon is currently sold out of the 11-inch M5 iPad Pro.
iPad Pro is a very capable computer for creatives and digital nomads, thanks to the M5 processor. And don’t overlook the gorgeous OLED display and Mac-like operation thanks to iPadOS 26.
Buying some configurations of the Mac Studio now means lengthy wait times. While that’s surely frustrating for those shopping for the powerful macOS desktop, this can be taken as a sign that it might be better to hold off on the purchase.
That’s because a new version is on the way.
Reports of Apple launching new M5 Pro-powered MacBook Pros have been circulating for a while now. With shipments of the M4 Pro/Max models delayed by a few weeks, all signs point to an imminent launch.
But exactly when will Apple make its move? Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman has now offered a more concrete timeline.
There’s tremendous anticipation for a MacBook Pro upgraded with faster M5 Pro or M5 Max processors, but the laptop did not launch this week, despite eager speculation that it would. And we need to be patient because we’re likely to continue waiting well into February and maybe beyond. A critical feature apparently isn’t ready yet: macOS Tahoe 26.3.
Apple’s M5-powered Macs might have a short shelf life, with the M6 chip possibly debuting “in the near future,” according to a new report.
But first, Apple will unveil MacBook Pros, Mac Studio and MacBook Air equipped with the M5 chip in the first half of 2026.
After Apple invited a select group of content creators to an “Apple Experience” in Los Angeles, speculation arose Friday that the company will use the event to launch an upgraded MacBook Pro with M5 Pro and M5 Max processors.
Appel scheduled its mysterious event for January 27 through January 29 — exactly the time many expect the refreshed Mac laptop to arrive.
Order a MacBook Pro today, and you may never get it at all. But it’s not some horrible scam — Apple is very close to introducing new models, and the company knows you probably won’t want the ones available today once the new ones launch.
That’s why the wait times on many MacBook Pro models with M4 Pro and M4 Max processors stretches out well into February. It gives buyers time to change their orders.
2025 was a busy year for Apple. The company launched multiple new products, some of which pushed its lineup forward in meaningful ways. However, others left plenty to be desired. Looking back, it’s clear that Apple delivered both standout successes and some head-scratching misses.
Here’s a look at the best and worst Apple products of 2025 — the ones that got everything right, and the ones that missed the mark completely.
Apple made it significantly easier to replace the battery on the M5 MacBook Pro. Instead of removing or replacing multiple internal components, users can now swap out the battery directly.
The company updated its Self Service Repair program info and official repair guides to reflect this change.
The iMac Pro could be poised for a major return — years after Apple discontinued the power all-in-one computer. This time, the professional desktop will be powered by Apple’s next-generation M5 Max chip, according to information found in internal Apple software.
It would be a change in strategy for Apple, but it seems the company is at least exploring the idea of an updated all-in-one desktop for the pro and prosumer markets.
With Apple’s M5 chip appearing in more devices, it’s time for an M5 vs. M4 chip smackdown. Apple unveiled its new M5 chip in October, marking a significant leap forward in on-device artificial intelligence performance over its predecessor. So let’s compare the M5 chip to the M4 chip.
While maintaining the same core architecture as the M4 chip, the M5 delivers dramatic improvements in AI processing, graphics capabilities and memory bandwidth that position it as Apple’s most AI-focused silicon to date. But it enough to temp would-be upgraders?
The M3 Ultra-equipped Mac Studio is among the most powerful Macs you can currently buy. Despite featuring faster cores, Apple indirectly confirmed it will not launch an M4 Ultra chip.
This won’t be the case with the M5, as the company reportedly plans to launch an M5 Ultra-powered Mac Studio in 2026.
The internet is going crazy over the Apple Vision Pro’s new Dual Knit Band, with AI users creating increasingly fantastical mutant versions of the distinctive-looking strap.
The craze started with people turning the white knit headband into a head-covering hat, but kicked into overdrive after X.com user John Dagdelen posted an image Sunday of a samurai warrior dressed head-to-toe in Vision Pro-inspired armor.
“We are not thinking big enough,” Dagdelen said in his X.com post. Dagdelen, founder of the Fluid operating system for VR headsets, who said he used ChatGPT to create the Vision Pro samurai image.
His AI creation clearly inspired others to think bigger … or at least weirder.
A wild array of AI creations followed, including some that animated Dagdelen’s samurai. The jokesters envisioned all sorts of bizarre designs and uses, from Star Wars characters to high-fashion gowns and handbags. There’s even an automotive design where the lenses make up a car’s front grill and headlights.
“There are some pretty creative ones,” Dagdelen told Cult of Mac.
This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: Griffin gets his hands on the new M5 Vision Pro, and he’s all too happy to share his first impressions about the upgraded headset.
Also on The CultCast:
Listen to this week’s episode of The CultCast in the Podcasts app or your favorite podcast app. (Be sure to subscribe and leave us a review if you like it!) Or watch the video version, embedded below.
★★★★★
The 2025 iPad Pro is the best high-end tablet Apple’s ever made. Don’t make the mistake of dismissing it as a “chip and ship” upgrade because the major change is the new M5 processor. Plenty of other enhancements make the tablet better than the M4 model. It moves files much faster, charges more quickly, offers better Wi-Fi and more.
If you’re still using an older model like the M1 iPad Pro, you’ll see really huge changes for the better if you upgrade to Apple’s latest tablet.
Based on my time with the M5 iPad Pro, here are seven new features that make the tablet really stand out.
★★★★☆
After spending some time with Apple’s new base-model 14-inch M5 MacBook Pro, I’ve come to a clear conclusion: It’s an excellent laptop that represents the absolute best iteration of a formula Apple perfected years ago. But whether you should buy one depends entirely on what you’re upgrading from and what you actually do with your computer.
Apple’s new M5-powered MacBook Pro, iPad Pro and Vision Pro hit store shelves Wednesday, and shoppers who preordered the devices began receiving them as well.
The first reviews for Apple’s new M5 MacBook Pro just landed, and the consensus among tech reviewers is clear: The incremental update improves an already excellent laptop. The 14-inch machine’s design remains unchanged from last year’s M4 model. However, improvements to processing power, storage speed and AI capabilities make it a compelling option for those upgrading from older machines. Still, current M4 MacBook Pro owners have little reason to feel envious.
Across M5 MacBook Pro reviews from The Verge, Wired, Tom’s Guide and Engadget, the laptop earns praise for its performance while raising questions about who should actually buy it.