M5 Chip with a big Vapor chamber in a new iPad Pro would be a game changer. This is a must have feature in the upcoming iPad Pro.
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iPad Pro Vapor Chamber on new iPad Pro.
- Thread starter TheRealAlex
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I wouldn’t be too sure, the surface area of the iPad can be plenty so unless the new chips are going to run super hot or be less efficient overall I wouldn’t bet money on it.
Not necccesary on such a large device. Dispersion can move the heat along metal plates instead.
Samsung Galaxy Tabs, including the Ultra, I think they have this, so Apple should definitely do it too. Doesn't hurt having it.
Size is not the reason for a vapor chamber. The thermal conductivity of a VC is like 10x of solid copper.
Heat no longer moves slowly atom by atom, but rather by gas filling the chamber almost instantaneously. Basically eliminates hot spots.
Unlike my iPhone Pro Max, my iPad Pros have NEVER overheated. Their larger size dissipates heat much better. I don’t see the need for a vapor chamber. 🤷♂️
Samsung's tablets since the Tab S9 have included a vapor chamber. This included the recent Tab S11 and Tab S11 Ultra.
It may not take up the whole interior, but it comes come with one. If Samsung can do a vapor chamber in their tablets since 2019, So can Apple.
The 17 Pro is only the beginning. The Vapor Chamber WILL come to the iPad Pro and MacBook Air.
Not a question of if, but a question of when. Could be next month, or a few years.
It may not take up the whole interior, but it comes come with one. If Samsung can do a vapor chamber in their tablets since 2019, So can Apple.
The 17 Pro is only the beginning. The Vapor Chamber WILL come to the iPad Pro and MacBook Air.
Not a question of if, but a question of when. Could be next month, or a few years.
Your hand that holds the iPhone will also work as good insulator making it more useful in an iPhone. Not so on an iPad. I think the battery will be the (usual) problem and not overheating. If they think a vapor chamber sells more iPads, they will included it!
Why? What would it actually do differently? Does the current iPad Pro thermal throttle a lot? As an owner of one I would state no it doesn't. And it has a huge metal back to dissipate the heat with.
To some degree, yes. When exporting 4K/60 proRes on Final Cut, the back can get a bit warm. Which ends on throttling the charge percentage. Even though it's connected to a 250W Anker Wall charger.
So it doesn't throttle performance, just the rate to charge at for a few short minutes. Hardly warrants a total internal design change and putting a vapour chamber in it.
For me [personally], not from what I have noticed. I've thrown more video resolutions at the M4. From 1080p to 8K and can say it handled with ease. From timeline scrubs to edits. With iPadOS 26 now officially supporting background tasks, there could be some throttle. Especially if start working on another video editing project with Safari, Affinity and Youtube all open as well.
Gaming performance on the other hand could have some throttle.
I play games a lot and never notice any throttling, but I don't glue myself to an FPS counter like some do. But to me it performs brilliantly. I don't think they will make it thicker now though, so it would be interesting to see how they get a vapour chamber in it. Then again I was surprised they did it with the iPhone.
If it's necessary I'm sure they'll put one in though.
Would be nice for the M5 or M6 MacBook Air to get this in order to enable the use of a Pro chip option (even if binned)
As expected, it’s coming to iPad Pro.
Again, the purpose of a VC has nothing to do with the heat dissipation area. It’s about the rate.
“Given all that, a vapor chamber in the iPad Pro — which is even thinner than the iPad Air — is on the company’s road map. Apple is now working on the feature, with plans to integrate it as soon as the next round of updates. The company is on an 18-month upgrade cycle for the iPad Pro, suggesting that the vapor chamber could be added around spring 2027.”
www.bloomberg.com
Again, the purpose of a VC has nothing to do with the heat dissipation area. It’s about the rate.
“Given all that, a vapor chamber in the iPad Pro — which is even thinner than the iPad Air — is on the company’s road map. Apple is now working on the feature, with plans to integrate it as soon as the next round of updates. The company is on an 18-month upgrade cycle for the iPad Pro, suggesting that the vapor chamber could be added around spring 2027.”
What’s Next for iPad Pro? A Vapor Chamber Like the One on the iPhone 17 Pro
Apple is working on a vapor chamber to improve cooling and performance in an iPad Pro slated for as early as 2027. Also: The company makes headway on a plan to bring ads to Apple Maps, and a foldable iPad with an 18-inch screen hits development snags.
www.bloomberg.com
If this makes the iPad pro heavier or thicker, I think it's a negative for most people. Very few people need more power, which will be coming anyway. The M5 13 is already 10 grams heavier than the M4, no big deal, but if they make it another, say, 40gr heavier, we are back at 2018 12.9 pro level (still 50gr lighter than the M1, but you can definitely feel the difference). That would be a negative for most people.
Having said that I think for the next generation pro in Spring 2027 Apple may pull another M4 surprise and give it the M7 before any other device. Also the M series chips seem to be alternating CPU and GPU increases (M2 was a big GPU increase, but modest CPU increase, M3 was not a big jump in either, but never came to the iPad Pro, M4 was huge increase in CPU, thank to the smaller node, but modest in GPU, M5 is a big increase in GPU but modest in CPU). Skipping a generation with M7 may give the iPad pro a big increase in both. Not that it would make much difference for most people, what will make more difference will be a big iPadOS improvement and for that it will probably be the following generation in Autumn 2028 with iPadOS 29, which will no longer have to support 3GB or 4GB RAM iPads and would allow Apple to be more aggressive with iPadOS (hopefully it's also when Apple gives more RAM to the iPad pro)
Having said that I think for the next generation pro in Spring 2027 Apple may pull another M4 surprise and give it the M7 before any other device. Also the M series chips seem to be alternating CPU and GPU increases (M2 was a big GPU increase, but modest CPU increase, M3 was not a big jump in either, but never came to the iPad Pro, M4 was huge increase in CPU, thank to the smaller node, but modest in GPU, M5 is a big increase in GPU but modest in CPU). Skipping a generation with M7 may give the iPad pro a big increase in both. Not that it would make much difference for most people, what will make more difference will be a big iPadOS improvement and for that it will probably be the following generation in Autumn 2028 with iPadOS 29, which will no longer have to support 3GB or 4GB RAM iPads and would allow Apple to be more aggressive with iPadOS (hopefully it's also when Apple gives more RAM to the iPad pro)
Depends on how many use their iPad Pro as a handheld. Based on MR threads over the years I feel like I'm among the minority who don't own a MKB or similar. I'm guessing there are a lot of iPad Pro's permanently on a desk in a MKB.
I have a MK for all my iPad pros that support it (all 6 of them), but I mostly use them handheld, it's not either or, you can do both. My guess is that those never using the iPad pro handheld are a small minority.