Powerful calculator for the nostalgic engineer
Very powerful calculator.

The manual need more work. It has to be more conceptual than procedural. The display is just ok.

I think this calculator is already a relic. It's a very nice tool for the geeky engineer, but if you can have Mathematica in a net book, go for it.

Another problem that I see is that if you need to solve simple problems, get a simpler calculator. Given it's huge number of functions, if you need to do simple stuff, it makes no sense having to learn how this machine works and dive into a menu tree to look for a function.

Also, if you have a smart phone, check for a programmable scientific calculator that runs in it.

calculator
i use this calculator for work. it's easy to use, and has everything i need it for.

The way I look at this calculator ...
I have been looking for a pocketable platform on which I can run my C code. Since the PB-2000C days are over, these calculators are the only products, which you can buy "new", in the market today. I've made some search before deciding on which calculator to buy and my criteria was to find a calculator which can directly be coded in C without the need to be connected to a PC. However, 20+ years have passed since Casio introduced PB-2000C and there is still no such thing in the market today. Very much surprised, I turned my head to devices which use Windows Mobile. The basic thing they are missing is the keyboard. You can do much with such a powerful processor but the communication with the device would be a royal pain. This setback turned my head back to calculators. I have gone through the usual suspects. Since my criteria was to find a device which can run compiled C code, this was the only alternative. Or, the others failed significantly to advertise their capabilities and my superficial search failed to notice them, as I wasn't planning to spend a lifetime to go though all the details that they hide here and there. So, HPGCC was there, the method to transfer files and run them on the HP 50G looked reasonable and I made my choice. Well, am I happy?

First of all, this calculator still communicates over RS232? I was planning to pay a visit to a technological museum and point at my kids the serial interface on a 8088, but no, it seems that I still have to use it. You can imagine the data transfer is not as you would expect. And no, you can not use the memory as a storing device when connected to a PC, if you use the calculator as a storage device, do the decent thing and buy yourself a memory stick. The manual which comes with the calculator is for beginners, meaning that, if you are old enough to be able to read and write and still you haven't seen a calculator in your life, than you can surely make use of it. The rest is on CD, which means that you have to carry a computer with the calculator all the time. Yet, the setting up of the ARM Tool Library which enables you to run your compiled C code was smooth. The HPGCC is working as it should and the documentation is well prepared. There is a supportive users group as well.

If you are going to use this device strictly as a mobile platform which will run your C code, I would recommend it to you. I haven't go thought the other aspects.

From someone that's never used HP before....
After owning my fair share of TI-89s that I believe to have failed prematurely pretty much in every case, I bought the HP 50g out of frustration. As the only real competitor to the TI-89, nobody I knew had ever used a HP calculator, except one professor in engineering school that would an old 80s model out of his shirt pocket and proceed to get the answer faster then I could get even figure out how to situate the parenthesis in my TI calculator. More on that (RPN).

I bought this calculator because of the poor reliability I've had with the TI calculators, so my first impressions were on build quality and perceived durability. 1st, it doesn't weigh nearly as much as the TI-89 Titanium I had. In my mind, weight is somewhat equated with higher quality build parts, although this is generally just a misconception. Relative to the TI-89T that I had though, it weighs almost nothing. The keyboard is very strange coming from the TI models. I'm not sure if I like it better or not. The TI models have what I can describe as a more 'common' type keyboard that doesn't really provide a large amount of tactile feedback. The HP does. It seems to slow me down on input as you have to press harder, but at the same time it's very explicit - you're less likely to make mistakes. Honestly, I think the TI edges the HP out on this, but it's a relatively minor issue. It really feels like you could run into problems 10 years or so down the line. I've never kept any electronic device that long without wanting to upgrade though. Final note on durability - it's survived one 3 ft fall from a desk onto carpet so far. This is one more then any TI I've had. This is where the TI's heavier weight becomes a pitfall - greater force on the LCD when the calculator falls.

There's a lot of reviews on here that seem to be divided between "the calculator is too difficult to use and I'll never be able to handle it" and "the difficulty is a necessary consequence of having more functionality and for speed down the road". I turned it on, and was immediately able to do basic operations in algebraic mode. I switched it to RPN mode however, as the everything I've read suggests that the real power of the calculator comes from its RPN functionality. If you've never used RPN, it's about a 30 minute to 1 hour transition. For simple arithmatic, it vastly speeds things up. On the other hand, it really slows down more complicated equations. Fortunately, you can mix algebraic and RPN mode and place algebraic equations on the RPN stack. Really neat, honestly. The equation builder is much better then anything I've seen in a TI calculator, so consider it a major plus once you learn it. Honestly, the calculator has little of the intuitive UI that the TI ones do, but if you're the type of person that learns by trial and error, and never reads the manual or WANTS to read the manual, you'll actually be alright. You probably know if you're the type of person that goes straight for something, or wants to read a manual on it first. Go elsewhere if you want instructions on how to do things. I'm the type of person that enjoys pushing random buttons to see what they do. The calculator is fairly easy to learn if you're this type of person.

Other stuff - the CAS seems to be quite a bit superior to the TI one. I'm usually doing symbolic simplification, and it seems to come up with more usable answers then my TI did. My "usable" I mean it doesn't always have the same tendency that my TI did that would make the equation I'm trying to simplify end up more complex then it was to begin with. It still doesn't hold a candle to MATLAB or Mathematica. As an aside, I'm still waiting on calculators that have something similar to MATLAB built in. Embedded processors are certainly getting fast enough. Let's see - the display is atrocious compared to the TI-89T. I mean it - it's awful. The viewing angle is so poor that if you set it on a desk a little in fron of you, you'll have trouble reading the screen unless your head is directly over it. It almost harks back to the days of the TI-86. The notation it uses for complex numbers is a little mind numbing to read sometimes. It's much faster then my TI-89T ever was, which is nice. Um, it's eats batteries compared to the TIs. The price you pay for speed, I guess.

So, if you've gotten this far and you're still interested, then you should probably get it. Put it a little time to learn it, and you'll end up saving time in the long run.

Pestering Amazon emails about HP 50
I like HP. Have for years. Went out of my way to replace my stolen HP 48G calculator with an HP product. I am saddened to discover it came algebraic by default and not RPN. Shame on HP. But it can be easily rectified. Also I am disappointed with the short battery life. I discovered they are not a typical shelf item and when Fry's did not have any, against my better judgment I thought I would experiment with an internet purchase instead of driving to Portland State's Bookstore in search of an HP Calculator. I was discouraged by their limited store hours.

I am now regretting my decision to use Amazon because of the constant emails they now litter my email box with; including this stupid survey that will likely fall on deff ears or some keyword searching bot.

Yes, I can use my spam filter to block the emails while they do the spoofing game to game all of us. However, I know that by sharing my experience with others who ask, it will give them pause when ponding buying through Amazon or supporting a local retailer who hires local folks.

Oh, why the middleman game? Can't Amazon do things direct with HP? Had I understood my purchase was coming from some unknown little office supply store company on the east coast via slow truck and not Seattle less than 200 miles away from Portland, I would have reconsidered my options.

I shake my head as to why some folks I know purchase items or as my mother does, give Amazon gift cards to her grandchildern (maybe she finds joy in teasing children) if they have the same pestering experience I am having. I will surely make it a Superbowl conversation with all that I can engage regarding my first Amazon experience.