Imagine never having to guess which way you’re holding your iPad when snapping a quick selfie or hopping on a FaceTime call. That’s the promise of Apple’s upcoming iPad Pro, which—according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman—will feature not one, but two front‑facing cameras. One camera will reside on the landscape edge as usual, while a second sensor will sit on the portrait edge, ensuring perfect framing whether you’re holding your slate vertically or horizontally.
Until last year, iPad Pros had their selfie camera positioned along the “top” edge of the device—ideal for portrait‑mode use. With the M4‑powered models launched in May 2024, Apple moved that lone camera to the landscape edge, a shift that delighted landscape enthusiasts but left portrait fans feeling a bit off‑center. While Face ID on current iPad Pros does work in any orientation, having the camera in only one spot meant that selfies and video calls could feel a bit awkward when you flipped the tablet upright.
Gurman’s scoop suggests Apple will solve this with a second, portrait‑edge camera. The iPad Pro will automatically switch between lenses based on how you’re holding it—landscape calls routed through the side camera, portrait calls through the top camera. It’s a simple fix, but it directly addresses user gripes and streamlines everything from casual selfies to business video chats.
Beyond the dual‑camera novelty, the next iPad Pro is expected to lean heavily on Apple’s next‑gen M5 chip. Early supply‑chain whispers from analyst Ming‑Chi Kuo indicate that mass production of M5‑powered iPad Pros should ramp up in the second half of 2025, aiming for a launch window in September or October—roughly an 18‑month cadence after the M4 models launched in May 2024.
Performance gains won’t be revolutionary: Apple’s M5 is projected to deliver mild yet meaningful CPU and GPU boosts, along with better power efficiency that could translate into longer battery life under heavy workloads. In practice, you can expect snappier multitasking in apps like Pro Motion‑heavy video editing or graphically intense AR experiences, plus a bit more endurance when streaming or sketching with the Apple Pencil.
Apple isn’t stopping at tablets. Gurman’s newsletter hints that the M5 silicon will also ripple through Apple’s other hardware: an updated Vision Pro headset, refreshed Mac mini, MacBook Pro, and an iMac overhaul are all on the roadmap, though likely on a stretched timeline well into 2026 for Macs. For consumers, this signals Apple doubling down on in‑house chip development, smoothing out performance gaps across devices and ensuring feature parity in areas like machine learning and graphics.
For educators, the dual‑camera setup means more flexible classroom deployments: teachers can switch between portrait and landscape orientations without worrying about awkward camera angles. Content creators get a small but welcome upgrade for shooting on‑the‑go; whether you’re conducting an on‑site interview or livestreaming a product unboxing, the iPad Pro will adapt instantly to your framing needs without fumbling for the right camera edge.
In the realm of telemedicine, doctors using iPad Pros for remote consultations can seamlessly shift orientations when showing charts or demonstrating exercises, improving patient engagement. And for the average user, FaceTime calls will finally feel just as natural whether you’re lounging in portrait mode or propped up in a landscape‑mode keyboard case.
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