Apple iPad Pro 11" M5 Chip Space Black 2025 Review

The 11-inch Apple iPad Pro M5 is the most powerful small tablet you can buy, with a best-in-class OLED screen and processor. It's perfect for demanding creative or business work, but its high price and average battery make it a poor choice for casual use.

If you're looking for the most powerful 11-inch tablet on the market, the Apple iPad Pro with the M5 chip is basically the only answer. It's the flagship iPad, and it's priced accordingly, hovering around $1100 to $1200. This model packs a 256GB SSD, 12GB of RAM, and that new M5 processor, all wrapped around a stunning OLED screen. People searching for a premium tablet for business, creative work, or just having the best tech will land right here. It's not a casual device; it's a tool for people who want their tablet to be as capable as their laptop.

The M5 chip is a monster. In our database, its CPU and GPU performance sit in the top 3% of all tablets, which means it's the absolute best right now. Apps fly open, complex 3D models render without a hitch, and you can edit multiple layers of video without seeing a slowdown. The 12GB of RAM is well above average, giving you plenty of headroom for multitasking. The only performance note is the battery, which lands squarely in the middle of the pack. It's solid, not spectacular, so you'll get a full day of work but might need to charge it overnight.

This is a premium product with a premium price. At over $1100, you're paying for the best screen, the best processor, and the best connectivity in the tablet world. If that's what you need, it's worth it. But if your budget is tighter, alternatives like the Samsung Galaxy Tab S10+ or even last year's iPad Pro offer strong performance for less. You're not getting a bargain here; you're getting the cutting edge.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab S10+ is the closest Android competitor. It has a larger screen, often a better battery, and runs full Android, which is more flexible for some tasks. But the iPad Pro's M5 chip and OLED screen combo is simply more powerful and visually stunning. The Microsoft Surface Pro is a different beast: it's a full Windows laptop in tablet form. If you need to run specific desktop software, the Surface wins. But for pure tablet experience and app ecosystem, the iPad Pro is smoother. The Lenovo Yoga Tab Plus offers a unique design with a built-in kickstand and Dolby Atmos speakers for a better media experience, but its raw performance isn't in the same league.

Skip this if you're just watching videos, browsing the web, or reading books. Its reading score is the weakest area, and you're paying a huge premium for power you won't use. Also, if you need to run desktop software for work or school, get a Surface Pro or a laptop instead. For a media-focused tablet, the Lenovo Yoga Tab Plus has better speakers and a kickstand. This iPad Pro is for pros, not casual users.

Should you buy this? If you're a professional artist, designer, or business user who needs the absolute best tablet hardware and you're invested in the Apple ecosystem, yes. The screen and performance are unmatched. But if you're a casual user, a student, or someone who just wants a device for reading and web browsing, skip it. The price is too high, and the battery isn't exceptional. For those folks, a standard iPad or a mid-range Android tablet will be a much better value.