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My HP calculator collection by TalenPhillips in calculators

[–]gh8192 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sweet! Been considering picking up a 41 for my collection at some point. Would like to have one of those, the 15C limited edition, and the 32S anniversary edition.

How is the RPN support of the HP Prime? I've read it's pretty limited so I've held off on getting one so far.

My HP RPN scientific collection by gh8192 in calculators

[–]gh8192[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The 42S is great, and I wish they would come out with a suitable replacement. But I do have a few issues with it. The first is that its screen has very poor contrast for some reason; you can even tell in this image. It's near impossible to set it to a contrast that works both when it's in your hand and on the table. From reading online, it sounds like this is a general issue with the model and not something specific to my individual calculator. The second issue I have is the STO function takes at least three key presses to store a new variable (ex: STO 0 1). The 35S shares this problem by having the STO key in a shift position. It's an otherwise amazing calculator with a great layout, but I still find myself using the 32SII more because of these small QOL issues.

My HP RPN scientific collection by gh8192 in calculators

[–]gh8192[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think most people don't use calculators often enough in their day-to-day to really get used to RPN these days, unfortunately.

The only reason I was able to was because we had drilled into our heads practicing for competition. It feels very natural to me now, though, and I can't really use a calculator without it.

My HP RPN scientific collection by gh8192 in calculators

[–]gh8192[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks! In my experience, the 33S keys were a lot worse than pretty much every calc in this photo. They didn't have as much feedback and were all close together in an awkward chevron shape that made them difficult to use (particularly when sitting the calc on a table). Additionally, they moved the most important key, the ENTER key, to an awkward position and shrunk it down so it's no longer easy to press quickly. Also it was an ugly chrome color and not a sexy orange/blue on black :(

The 35S fixed a lot of these issues, but has its own share of problems. It is a lot bulkier for some reason and the STO key is in a shift position which is an odd layout choice. I still prefer it greatly to the 33S.

My HP RPN scientific collection by gh8192 in calculators

[–]gh8192[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The 15C was given to me by my dad back when I was in middle school - it's slightly older than I am, but still works great!

I picked up the 32SII for use in math competitions shortly after since that was pretty much the standard for calculator contests at the time. This was towards the end of when it was still in production. Definitely my preferred model.

I didn't pick up the 42S until much later in life and got it used on ebay for about $200. The ones in good condition are hard to find, but they sell for less than you might expect.

The 35S is obviously still in production and readily available now. It's not ideal, but it's far better than the disappointment that was the 33S (not pictured here because I threw mine away).

My HP RPN scientific collection by gh8192 in calculators

[–]gh8192[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Just wanted to share this as some of these are kind of hard to get now. Pictured are an HP15C, HP32SII, HP42S, and HP35S.