Apple’s iPad Pro lineup has traveled a long road since the groundbreaking 2018 model iPad that introduced a laptop-like design language, ditched the Home button, and proved that tablets could be serious work machines. Even in 2025, many 2018 iPad Pro users still swear by its speed, build quality, and practical longevity.
But now, seven years later, Apple has launched the iPad Pro M5-a device stacked with flagship innovations like tandem OLED, desktop-grade power, redesigned accessories, next-gen wireless tech, and pro-level sensors. This comparison explores whether the jump from 2018 to 2025 truly feels like stepping into the future-or simply upgrading for the sake of new specs.
For anyone still sitting on an older iPad Pro, the question is clear: Has Apple finally built a Mini-laptop killer worthy of a 7-year wait?
A Familiar Blueprint Refined-Not Reinvented
When you place the 2018 iPad Pro and the 2025 M5 model side-by-side, one thing stands out immediately: they belong to the same family tree. In 2018, Apple introduced a dramatic design shiftfla-t rails, symmetrical bezels, no physical home button, and a bold industrial refinement reminiscent of iPhones and MacBooks. That design became the foundation for years of Pro tablets to follow.
The M5 model respects that DNA, but sharpens it:
- A slimmer body with slightly more rounded corner machining for better palm comfort
- A subtle weight reduction, making it feel less like a slab and more like a notebook cover
- A new deep space-black finish, richer and more refined than the previous dark greys
While the shift isn’t immediately dramatic by appearance, it is dramatic by experience-particularly for people who travel often, hold the tablet for long reading sessions, or use it in one hand for handwriting.
However, if you already love the original 2018 form factor, bezel symmetry, and industrial rigidity, the M5’s design enhancements may feel like “nice extras” rather than a compelling reason to upgrade all by itself.
The Display Gap Is Larger Than the Hardware Gap
The 2018 iPad Pro shipped with what was, at the time, one of Apple’s best LCD panels. The Liquid Retina LCD offered:
- 120Hz ProMotion
- Sharp, punchy colors
- Excellent daylight visibility
- Reliable GPU-powered graphics support
For most users, it has held up admirably, even against newer LCD iPads. But it isn’t an OLED panel. And OLED was still years away from entering most mainstream Apple tablets.
The 2025 M5 iPad Pro changes that-and then multiplies it.
Tandem OLED, Not Standard OLED
The M5 uses dual-stack OLED technology (tandem panel), meaning two OLED emission layers working together instead of one. This results in:
- Much higher sustained brightness for outdoor work
- Sharper peak HDR highlights when watching supported content
- Near-perfect black levels
- Extremely high contrast that makes UI overlays float cleanly on screen
- Reduced energy use, especially when dark-mode UI is active
Unlike typical OLED panels, tandem OLED provides a longer lifespan, better burn-in resistance, and multiple layers of brightness efficiency handling-especially useful for users keeping the iPad on bright canvases or media timelines for hours.
ProMotion Still Here, But Better Matched
The 120Hz refresh rate now pairs beautifully with OLED contrast depth, making everything feel smoother than before:
- Scrolling web pages feels ink-liquid-smooth
- Animations don’t just move-they glow
- Pencil strokes feel closer to digital paper than ever
Conclusion on Displays
If screen quality matters most in your day-to-day iPad use, this is the biggest generational leap Apple has delivered since 2018.
However, for users primarily working with static text, spreadsheets, and casual browsing, the 2018 LCD remains sufficient-it just won’t look or feel nearly as premium or vivid.
Performance: From “Fast” to “Mac-Class Fast”
The 2018 iPad Pro’s A12X chip was one of the most powerful mobile silicon designs Apple ever built before it transitioned to M-series chips. Its strengths included:
- 8-core CPU
- 7-core GPU
- 4GB RAM
Even today, it still runs:
- LumaFusion video projects
- Procreate canvases
- Lightroom editing
- Heavy browsing with multiple tabs, fairly well
But the 2025 M5 chip is not a faster A12X it’s a different class of processor.
M5 Performance Upgrades
- 10-core CPU optimized for threading and high multitasking
- 10-core GPU for console-class mobile rendering
- Up to 16GB RAM, scaling the device into desktop workflow territory
- Advanced Neural Engine architecture for next-gen AI processing efficiency
What This Means in Real Use
| Task | 2018 A12X Experience | 2025 M5 Experience |
| Video editing | Fast, but can slow at 6K+ timelines | Smooth and sustained, even at high resolution |
| Gaming | High performance, capped by older graphics pipelines | Higher frame-rate + deeper real-time HDR rendering |
| 3D modeling | Capable but limited by memory and sensors | Significantly more fluid with RAM + LiDAR |
| AR apps | Basic AR, no spatial tracking precision | Accurate depth mapping + scene object sensing |
| Multitasking | Good with 6-7 apps | Better with 12+ apps without buffer slowing |
Where the A12X moves quickly and occasionally warms, the M5 moves faster and stays stable longer, thanks to new RAM support and a redesigned internal cooling architecture.
If performance matters the most, the M5 isn’t just better-it’s potentially generationally transformative.
Battery Life: Rated the Same, Feels Different
On paper:
- Both iPads promise 10 hours of battery life
Reality tells a different story:
2018 Reality (in 2025 usage)
- After 7 years, iPad batteries naturally degrade
- Heavy tasks may drop average runtime to 5-6 hours
- More frequent charging needed across active workflows
M5 Reality
- New battery cell
- Better thermal efficiency
- New Adaptive Power Mode, which intelligently balances resource draw and system output
- 40W fast-charging support, allowing shorter charging windows
This means:
- Less charging downtime
- More dependable all-day productivity
- Faster restoration of battery cycles
If you depend on heavy apps and long shifts of use, the M5 will feel more enduring than the older model today.
Accessory Leap: A Bigger Change Than the Tablet Itself
One surprising truth in an iPad generational comparison: accessories often change how the tablet feels more than the tablet itself.
Accessories on 2018 Pro
- Supports Apple Pencil Gen 2
- Supports the early Magic Keyboard model
- Tactile, useful—but older by 2025 standards
Accessories on 2025 M5 Pro
- Apple Pencil Pro with:
- Pressure gestures
- Haptic taps for tool switching
- Hover-to-preview support
- More natural handwriting stroke feel
- Next-gen Magic Keyboard with:
- Backlit keys
- Expanded shortcut rows
- Better hinge ergonomics
- More stable desk docking experience
- Improved magnetic alignment and palm comfort while writing
If you sketch, annotate, take notes, or do document editing on the iPad all the time, the M5 accessory ecosystem is a noticeable step forward.
Camera & Audio: The Upgrade Apple Didn’t Talk Up Enough
2018 Camera System
- 12MP single rear lens
- Front camera is adequate for FaceTime calls
- Document scanning capable
- No ultra-wide support
- No depth sensors
2025 iPad Pro M5
- Upgraded sensors
- Ultra-wide lens for better group video framing
- LiDAR sensor for:
- Better AR projects
- Room scanning
- Depth detection
- More precise measurement capture
- Spatial audio tuning upgrades, especially with AirPods integration
For media recording and augmented reality apps, the M5 model doesn’t just improve-it expands what you can do.
Connectivity: From 2018 Standards to 2025 Standards
The original 2018 iPad Pro included USB-C at a time when that port itself was a pro-level luxury. But it didn’t include Thunderbolt, smart-home threading, or up-to-date wireless protocols.
M5 Connectivity Includes
- Wi-Fi 7
- Bluetooth 6
- Thread networking support for smart-home ecosystems
- Thunderbolt 4 port with:
- Faster wired transfers
- External monitor connection support
- More peripheral device syncing potential
- Optional 5G for mobile data users
If long-term software support and wireless reliability are critical to you, the M5 Pro will last years longer in OS updates and ecosystem compatibility than the 2018 device.
So… Is the Upgrade Really Worth It After 7 Years?
Upgrade IF you are:
- a creator working with 4K, 6K, or 3D projects
- someone who values OLED-level display quality
- someone whose iPad battery no longer lasts a full day
- a user of AR, room-scanning, or measurement apps
- a power multitasker (10+ active apps at once)
- dependent on Apple Pencil and keyboard workflows
- someone planning to rely on their iPad for 5 more years of OS support
Don’t upgrade yet IF you are:
- primarily browsing or reading
- satisfied with the current display quality
- not using the Pencil, Keyboard, or AR features all the time
- on a strict budget
For some, the device that represents the best “value middle ground” may be the M4 Pro rather than the M5.
But for legacy Pro users, the M5 iPad Mini Pro 2026 feels like the most meaningful jump forward since 2018.
Final Verdict
The 2025 iPad Pro M5 isn’t just a faster tablet-it’s a notebook-class creative hub that still fits into the body of a lightweight tablet. Whether that generational progress justifies the purchase depends on your use case-but for many 2018 iPad Pro users, this update will finally feel like the long-overdue leap into the future they’’ve been waiting for.
