HP50g vs. TI-89

January 4, 2012

I tried honestly to use the HP 50g, and here are a few objections that put me back to the TI-89. The low resolution (blocky/grainy) HP 50g display detracts from its usefulness as a high-end graphing calculator. Low resolution limits length of equations and number of equations on the screen. One of the major reasons for having a high-end calculator is to allow entering long equations on the screen.

That being said, the HP 50g has a dedicated core of aficionados. HP 50g advocates will present a list of counterpoints–and their arguments have merits.

Given the feature set and the inevitable eventual sunsetting of the 15+ year old TI-89 series, a new user considering what high-end calculator to purchase should look to the TI Nspire CX CAS.

In closing, I will give strong admonition to students: DO NOT rely heavily on calculators in math courses. This will only cause suffering in later courses. Even if the last math class in college will be Calculus I or II, you will never gain the true richness of understanding if constantly using a calculator for homework.

A better approach is to do the problems manually, and on occasion check with the calculator.