Which calculator should I purchase?

chickendude · Post by **chickendude** » Fri 14 Jul, 2006 4:59 pm

I'm not looking at it from the usefulness for school, as next year I'm getting a laptop. It would be to act as a portable game player, but mostly as a development tool.

I'm looking for something in the 83 series, but there's so many options that I don't even know anymore. I used to have an 82, 83, 83+, and 83+SE, but those are all MIA. Now I've noticed that there is an 84 series, various colors, and things I have no clue about. I'm not sure about compatability, and as such I was wondering which calculator would be the best (or most compatable)?

CompWiz · Post by **CompWiz** » Fri 14 Jul, 2006 5:08 pm

I would say get the 84+SE. It will run all 83 series programs, and it has a large archive space. Also, some sound programs require the faster speed it runs at. Plus, it has a usb port that allows for faster transfers, as well as for add ons such as USB drives, keyboards, mice, etc... and possibly even multi-calc linking in the future without having to make custom cables.

I currently have the 84+SE, and it's nice to not have to worry about running out of archive space. I got it on eBay for $60 in the original, unopened, factory packaging. It's working great.

chickendude · Post by **chickendude** » Fri 14 Jul, 2006 5:17 pm

Ok, the USB port is the thing that worried me. I didn't know if that made it 'decompatible' with previous versions. Does it have the traditional linkport as well? And is it faster than the 83+SE?

Hah, thanks for the input

I was kind of leaning towards it anyway, so hopefully I can find one cheap off ebay.

Is there anything in particular I should be aware of concerning the newer models?

CompWiz · Post by **CompWiz** » Fri 14 Jul, 2006 5:21 pm

I think it's the same speed as the 83+SE. And yes, it has both types of linkports. Also, I forgot to mention, it has a built in clock. You can time things in programs with it, so you can test different code to see which is fastest.

The only thing that I don't like about the 84 model calc's is the "stylish" shape. It is bigger than an 83, and the buttons are in a curved pattern. But other than that, they're fine.

Post by **benryves** » Fri 14 Jul, 2006 5:22 pm

There are LCD glitches (slower driver chips) which mean that games that hammer the LCD ports slightly too rapidly can result in a garbled LCD.

I don't know what the official count is on this (I own a regular 83+), hopefully someone can fill you in a bit better. As far as I know, it's not much of a problem as most software runs fine.

CompWiz · Post by **CompWiz** » Fri 14 Jul, 2006 5:28 pm

well, only some 84's are affected by the lcd bug. The first one I bought was, but there is a program on ticalc.org called 84+SE LCD fix that fixes it. The second one I got(after losing the first one) worked fine on all programs, without the fix. I think that the only program that has a serious problem with this that the program won't fix is harvest moon. Other than that, all programs should work fine, either out of the box, or once you run the LCD fix program(you only need to run it once, after that it just stays fine during normal usage. You don't need to run it every time you turn it on or anything.).

And yes, only a few programs are affected in any case.

Post by **DarkAuron** » Fri 14 Jul, 2006 5:47 pm

Except if theres a RAM reset you need to run the LCD fix program again..

CompWiz · Post by **CompWiz** » Fri 14 Jul, 2006 6:13 pm

like I said:

CompWiz wrote:it just stays fine during normal usage

I wouldn't consider ram clears to be normal usage. And if it's teachers that are doing it to you, it's easy enough to block that. For manual resets the Fakeres 3 program works fine(although previous versions don't support 84 series calcs) and dislink can stop them from linking and clearing it. It worked fine for my science exam. I was able to use cabamap to find answers to hundreds of digits past the decimal point.

As far as I can see, the benefits of an 84 series calc outweigh the detriments.

threefingeredguy · Post by **threefingeredguy** » Fri 14 Jul, 2006 6:53 pm

The only problem with my 84+ is that grayscale is a little less beautiful, but it still works. Some 83+BEs had garbled/slanted LCDs, but you don't hear as much argument about that.

chickendude · Post by **chickendude** » Fri 14 Jul, 2006 6:53 pm

Detriments? I'm hoping you just used the wrong word

Also, are there two separate OS versions for the 83/84? I still have a copy of 1.12 sitting on my harddrive from forever ago.

I could probably convince my mom to buy me the 84+SE, then I'll pick up a regular 83+ from the pawn shop or something.

But is the LCD glitch the only issue?

chickendude · Post by **chickendude** » Fri 14 Jul, 2006 6:54 pm

threefingeredguy wrote:The only problem with my 84+ is that grayscale is a little less beautiful, but it still works.

Why is that?
EDIT: or is that the LCD glitch you were talking about?

threefingeredguy · Post by **threefingeredguy** » Fri 14 Jul, 2006 7:00 pm

You need another OS for the 84+ since it has the clock and extra hardware ports and BASIC functions. I'm not sure it is because of THE glitch. All B&W programs run fine. However, I spent a good long time with Jim e (the master of the LCD) running diagnostics and stuff that he made up. He said my calc was weird and that it was a defect. Still works, it just makes me unable to appreciate flickerless grayscale (it flickers).

chickendude · Post by **chickendude** » Fri 14 Jul, 2006 7:12 pm

So MOST of the 84+SEs should have no trouble with the flickerless grayscale?

chickendude · Post by **chickendude** » Fri 14 Jul, 2006 7:47 pm

Hmm..hold up a second. Is the only difference between the 83 and 84 + SE the USB and clock? I just checked the specs on ticalc.org and it appears as though everything else remains the same.

CompWiz · Post by **CompWiz** » Sat 15 Jul, 2006 12:29 am

yes, the 84+SE is basically the same as the 83+SE, except for the clock, usb, and different shape. I think that TI has stopped making the 83+SE because it was replaced by the 84+SE.