Comment by linguae

2 days ago

I collect HP calculators: I have an HP 12C, an HP 15C Collector's Edition (there are a few of them left still for sale), an HP 32Sii, and an HP 48SX. I sometimes use them, but whenever I'm in front of a computer (which is almost all the time), I find myself using the Unix dc command.

Handheld calculators are nice, but outside of exam settings, I could use a smartphone or a computer, though calculators are nice when I want to work distraction-free through something that requires performing calculations. I believe this is why HP largely exited the calculator market: HP's target market was professionals, and cheap computers and smartphones killed the calculator market for them, similar to how electronic calculators killed the slide rule. Texas Instruments, however, is still in the calculator business, largely due to their successful courting of American middle and high schools, as well as ETS and other testing agencies, beginning in the 1990s. I don't know the situation in Japan regarding calculator usage, but I see Casio scientific and graphing calculators proudly displayed at electronics stores such as Yodobashi Camera and Bic Camera.

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linguae

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incanus77  2 days ago

I collect as well:

  HP-35 (1972, first scientific, first in space) - in leather case
  TI-30 (1976, first low-cost scientific)
  HP-12C (1981, financial, c. 2000 remanufacture)
  HP-15C (1982, advanced scientific) - in leather slipcase
  HP-16C (1982, computer programming) - in leather slipcase with manual
  TI-30 SLR (1982, TI’s first solar-powered scientific)
  HP-17B II (1990, financial)
  TI-85 (1992, TI’s first with link port)
  TI-82 (1993)
  TI-92 (1995, TI’s first with computer algebra system)

I use the HP-16C pretty regularly when I'm working on network protocol programming. I have good apps that do it, but there's something about having the calculator right in front of my keyboard rest and turning to it that I like more. In a pinch or outside the house I'll use JPRN instead.

https://github.com/zathras/jrpn