I have a Casio fs-85B - sent you a pm. - (not dot-matrix). Fired it up tonight and works fine! (Dual power source)
Looks like this:
Right, I'm not a scientific chap. I have managed perfectly well in recent years with the scientific calculator on iOS. However, I have an upcoming exam where I will need a scientific calculator and phones are not permitted.
I have in front of me two Casios: fx85WA and fx83ES. Both are driving me to distraction and I yearn for my venerable, dearly-departed fx115N. I can't see any new equivalent on Amazon etc, but perhaps someone here has a suggestion that would fit the bill?
Required specs:
- hard keys for: 1/x; M+; MR
- answers expressed as decimals instead of chuffing fractions
- a normal, old-school lcd display instead of chuffing pixels
Yes, I'm aware that this is a bit ranty, luddite, and that I'm probably no more than a couple of clicks away from finding out how to operate all the joypads and other toot on the calculators I have to hand. But I don't want to; I just want a proper old school chuffing calculator. Thoughts?
I have a Casio fs-85B - sent you a pm. - (not dot-matrix). Fired it up tonight and works fine! (Dual power source)
Looks like this:
Last edited by MartynJC (UK); 22nd October 2020 at 22:58.
Certainly close. I do dislike those dot matrix displays though....
Something like this?
It's 35 years old and still works on its original battery!
There seem to be a plethora of fx115N calcs on eBay. Top one on the list was £8.
I'm running a Casio FX-3600Pv, got to be at least 20 yrs old, still works a treat.
What about an old fx-39?
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/233754416182
Or an fx-451?
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/164454245466
I don’t need a calculator but I’m tempted myself!
Put “casio scientific” in the eBay search bar and there’s thousands to choose from! And a proper trip down memory lane.
Last edited by Dave+63; 23rd October 2020 at 09:11.
Amazon again...only MR is two button presses.
I'm guessing graphical calculators are not allowed? Otherwise I'd recommend the legendary TI-83 Plus. Massively screwed me over learning statistics as I took lots of shortcuts using the calculator
Googling Casio fx115N doesn’t half bring back school memories, happy times! That’s now got me wondering where my old calculator is, can’t imagine it would have been thrown away.
Before buying a new calculator, its worth checking with the uni or exam board that you are sitting with, what calculators are permitted for the exam.
Most uni exam boards have limited the models that are allowed due to cheating and the rules are very strict.
If it's not one of the listed models then it can't be used (even if its a very basic office model that only adds up, subtracts, divides and multiplies) then it can't be used, and any attempts to use a non approved calculator is instant disqualification
I'm sure this chap would be happy to quote you for a bespoke model to your personal specification.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Handmade-...y/222647253093
I've still got a couple of Casios lying around. Must have a play with them! I was an early adopter of the Sinclair Scientific in the mid 70's which cost about £500 in today's money. It was a step up from entering calcs in reverse Polish notation in the early basic version I had.
I remember buying a slide rule in WH Smiths to take to the calculator shop as they were offering a trade in deal at the time.
So many options, you just need to have a look around. E.G. this one at £8 (https://smile.amazon.co.uk/Helect-2-Line-Engineering-Scientific-Calculator/dp/B01MCQMORK).
Personally I use Hewlett Packard - I prefer the more robust build and keys.
Many thanks for posting that link, but it is no different from the two machines I have on hand. Surprisingly, there aren’t many options, when you look at my required spec. Seems like there was a shift about 25 years ago, and most of the stuff I need on primary keys was pushed to secondary keys....
It’s looking increasingly like an eBay job I think.
Perhaps not so surprising when you consider that those which do will likely be utilising the same underlying bought in processor chip from a previous generation. (The production cost of VLSI components is massively front loaded, hence also the plethora of budget/generic offerings now it has been superseded.)
So for reasons I won't bore you with I decided to take a "gap year" in the middle of my degree at LSE, ended up working for an insurance company, the mundanity of the work being made up for by having some money for lots of partying!
Anyway, when I left the job I decided to go back to LSE and my leaving present was this calculator which I chose due to the amount of stats I had to do...got a 2:1 in the end so all ended well!
I found this when clearing out some stuff a couple of years ago and was amazed to find it still works, so it sits in my desk drawer for basic calculation duties.
TBH, I have no idea what most of the stuff it does means anymore
Good luck OP in finding what you need
I must confess this was not a thread I was expecting to see! But strangely, it has put a smile on my face.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Funny this. I still use my 11C and the keys are perfect. I remember though my frustration at not being able to afford the 15C when I needed to buy a calculator.
It is funny because I was never, ever in a position where my 11C couldn’t do something a 15C could have done. Fabulous little machine.
There was also the previous generations, with a beige plastic case and LEDs display. The 41C, wasn’t it?
'Against stupidity, the gods themselves struggle in vain' - Schiller.
You are welcome to have my fx-570c if it works for your needs. Not getting any use anymore here.
15C was the one, but as you say...
I tend to think of the 34C as the LED predecessor, but it wan't in a beige case. 41C is more computer like, and has a fancy alphanumeric LCD.
https://www.hpmuseum.org
http://www.vcalc.net/hp.htm
© Rick Furr
Don't just do something, sit there. - TNH
Thank you for that. I was thinking of the HP25/25C.
'Against stupidity, the gods themselves struggle in vain' - Schiller.
Does anyone know if the HP 35s is any good? My 28s is dying - battery cover very dodgy - and the 12c doesn’t does scientific functions. I don’t want a Prime as it is beyond overkill for me.
'Against stupidity, the gods themselves struggle in vain' - Schiller.
Out of interest, what's the difference between the two (other than exterior)? [I assume you were on the looking for a 15c?]. Have you many others?
The 12c was the actuarial machine of choice in the 90s (provided by the Faculty to all students when I started), but no longer. I still use mine most days. I have the 21s in the office (which my dad bought me when I was doing my Maths / Stats degree). I find RPN more efficient.
'Against stupidity, the gods themselves struggle in vain' - Schiller.
Whilst you are awaiting a fuller response from Mr C himself, you may like to browse The Museum of HP Calculators which is a good resource for information on the older HP calculators.
I remember at Business School the 10B being the one to have as it calculated IRR, NPV etc. looking on Amazon it is still made !
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Hewlett-Pac...product&sr=1-5
I still have my 28S, that was a pretty common calc amongst my cohort 30 years ago. I agree that RPN is more efficient especially once it becomes second nature. I haven't used RPN for many years now though, it would take some adjusting to go back.
My collecting interest is primarily in mechanical but I do have a handful of interesting (to me at least) electronic calculating machines. For day to day use I've had an 11C scientific calculator since college days and this thread rekindled my desire for the 15C which was out of reach back in the day. As well as extended memory, the HP-15C added Numeric Integration, Complex Numbers, Matrix Operations and a couple of other functions.
This really is a fount of knowledge on HP calculators up to around 1986 and has a very useful comparison feature. I've included the ubiquitous financial/business HP-12C mentioned above for reference.
https://www.hpmuseum.org/cgi-bin/com...=none&shade=ON
Last edited by Mr Curta; 10th January 2021 at 01:34.
Don't just do something, sit there. - TNH
12C is programmable but has financial rather than scientific functions.
There's some more info broken down by use on this site: https://www.keesvandersanden.nl/calculators/hp_lcd.php
Don't just do something, sit there. - TNH
I still have my Casio FX3600P that I used for my A levels. Still use it sometimes.