Exciting News, perfected color (colour) graphing calculators are here. - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: Lawsen
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: September 02, 2011, 08:26:23 pm
content: We would expect HP-Kinpo of China to introduced the color graphing HP-50G. HP is falling behind in calculators. Worse, HP is trying to leave the Android tablet and PC markets. HP is going to be just a brand name without any engineering or science backing it up, a worthless.The most exciting news in graphing calculators are from Texas Instruments, TI. TI has announced the TI CX CAS and TI CX without CAS for younger students to able to use on some exams and tests. The TI CX CAS are for people like me that are not in school. TI has a data acquisition cradle to make simple measurements with the correct probes. These are all battery powered instruments that you can take to rural places to make measurements like magnetometer for geology, pH and salinity for biology and aquarium studies are examples. These calculators have full color back lit displays. Casio was the first company to introduce the graphing calculator in the 1980s, the Casio fx-7000G. Casio was the first company to introduce the color graphing calculator in the 1990s, but the colors are washed out and not back lit, super twist nematic passive LCD display. Casio announced the latest colorful, back lit LCD calculator with telephone like keypad in the $89.00 USD Casio fx-cg10. TI have been making data acquisition calculator based products since the 1990s with the TI CBL, "calculator based laboratory," system. My mechanical drawing instructor introduced me to this set up. I have been hooked on it, since then and use it for everything in geology and put in a water proof bag and wade in the sea side at the beach. It is truly a remarkable portable data acquisition system with a nice calculator, too.Surf here:http://www.vernier.com/products/texas-instruments/handhelds/ti-nscxcas/http://www.vernier.com/products/interfaces/ti-nslabc/

author: Computeruser
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: September 02, 2011, 08:55:49 pm
content: >>> HP is going to be just a brand name without any engineering or science backing it upTrue and sad, that. I still have a couple of HP RPN Calculators and I won't give them up. ... C

author: Semantics
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: September 02, 2011, 09:13:12 pm
content: All I really want in a graphing calculator is massive dpi resolution, personally.

author: IanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 02, 2011, 09:44:58 pm
content: Hand held programmable graphing calculators are (sadly) obsolete and have been for a long time. Such calculators only really hold nostalgia value these days. The embedded processor in modern handheld devices far exceeds the puny horsepower that graphing calculators used to have. For instance, I have a full emulation of the HP48GX on my iPhone that runs far faster than a real HP48GX did.As for screen resolution, my iPhone 4 has a high contrast 960x640, 326 ppi touch sensitive display. This completely shades the 320x240 display on the TI-Nspire calculator.For sensors and data acquisition you may as well produce a data acquisition cradle that connects to the mobile device using a standard USB cable and put interface software on the mobile device that makes full use of its nice screen and powerful CPU.The TI offering has the advantage of a ready made system of cradle and sensors that may be valuable for educational use, but I don't see much in it for professional users. The future of mobile computing and calculation is in devices like the iPhone and Android hooked into your desktop though the cloud.

author: Computeruser
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: September 02, 2011, 09:58:17 pm
content: >>> Hand held calculators are (sadly) obsolete and have been for a long time.I find my own RPN calculator in daily use and often in at the same time as my phone. I don't see it as obsolete - that is why I keep them going. ... C

author: IanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 02, 2011, 10:13:55 pm
content: Quote from: Computeruser on September 02, 2011, 09:58:17 pmOK, I corrected my post to be clearer...

author: Zero999
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 03, 2011, 05:10:53 pm
content: Quote from: IanB on September 02, 2011, 09:44:58 pmThe proper keyboard as opposed to a touch screen is also an advantage in my opinion.I've often thought about a graphical calculator but wouldn't get one of these. I'd rather have an old fashioned non-backlit LCD which last for years from a button lithium cell.I suppose you could also make your own calculator as mobile phone LCDs are cheap.

author: Unknown
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: September 03, 2011, 05:50:54 pm
content: Real calculators have some advantages like dedicated key board and battery life, but the more advanced (eg. graphing/programmable) models don't make much sense anymore IMO. They usually require you to go through menus for anything but basic arithmetic, so you might as well use a touch screen. The resolution of the LCD usually sucks for graphing. Programming is usually quite clumsy. Performance is pathetic for iterative algorithms. I/O is extremely limited.Graphing and programming was neat when real computers were not available or too large to carry. If I have to do any advanced math, programming or graphing, I rather grab a real language like Python or a desktop math package like Sage, Maxima, Maple or MATLAB.

author: Zad
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 03, 2011, 05:54:27 pm
content: Almost all the top end calculators on the market at the moment are purely toys. Have you seen how huge the Nspire CX is? The batteries only last 2 weeks, and rechargeables are not included. I wrote a biggish blog article about the state of the market here:http://electronicsdesigner.blogspot.com/2011/05/difficult-calculations.htmlThe i41CX+ is probably as far as things will go in the short to medium term. At least you can run it on an iPod Touch, which has it's own rechargeable batteries and costs less:http://www.alsoftiphone.com/i41CXplus/Meanwhile, serious users are waiting the re-release of the HP-15C

author: IanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 03, 2011, 08:01:58 pm
content: Given that the commercial calculator offerings are so weak today, I wonder what are the barriers to an open hardware design, things hard to achieve by the hobbyist that the professional manufacturers can do?The main thing I can think of is the case design and the packaging. What we may be lacking is the convenient ability to design a custom plastic shell with appropriate openings, internal mounting points, external contours and labels, and then have this shell manufactured in small quantity at reasonable cost. This surely is where 3D printing would come in. The keys of course are another related issue.What are the choices today, and how far away are we from a practical "design consumer products yourself" situation?

author: Computeruser
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: September 03, 2011, 08:08:48 pm
content: Excellent point. I am thinking, though, that my older HP RPN calculators are sufficiently good that they may outlast me, so not to worry. I even have a working (but not use) HP29C in the basement. It goes back about 25 or 30 years. ... C

author: Zad
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 04, 2011, 04:48:14 am
content: The current hobbyist 3D printing systems (Makerbot, Reprap etc) just don't have the resolution and overall ability to make an acceptable case I'm afraid. One possibility is to take an existing machine like the HP-30B and "repurpose" it, writing totally new custom software for it:http://www.thecalculatorstore.com/epages/eb9376.sf/en_US/?ObjectPath=/Shops/eb9376/Products/%22WP34s%20Pack%22As an aside, HP have finally announced the HP-15C re-issue!http://www.hp.com/hpinfo/newsroom/press/2011/110901xa.htmlI suppose $99 isn't bad, but it is strange how they are asking $20 more for the 15C than the 12C, which has identical hardware, other than key labels.

author: Bored@Work
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 04, 2011, 07:50:34 am
content: Quote from: Zad on September 04, 2011, 04:48:14 amGuess who decides about the price? Bean counters. And they probably think 15C scientific users are more gullible than 12C bean counter users.