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HP Releases Classic Calculator iPhone Apps

My HP 15C and HP 16C are still my primary calculators. I already own one of the iPhone apps that attempts to emulate these calculators; and it does a pretty good job. However, it lacks certain advance functions, does not allow for multiple variables, and has no programmability. I will be very interested in seeing what the HP iPhone app provides. If it provides full functionality, I might buy it. The price is a concern. If the price were $10 lower, I would not even hesitate.
 
Would anyone who has bought the 12c be willing to compare it to RLM's version? Since this is new, I've been using RLM's 12C Lite since I got my iPhone last October as my principal calculator when I don't have my real 12c with me.
 
Not as bad as some here are implying.

I think many of you are going overboard here, the price is only slightly stiff.

What you have to realize is that if HP emulates it caculators completely this is not a minor undertaking. A software package that can emulate with out error will be valuable to many.

As to the emulated hardware they really aren't outdated as many imply. For many they have all the functionality and accuracy needed. You have to remember HP calculators where more accurate than the computers of the day when they first came out.

Now having used emulators and Apples supplied caculator on the iPhone I have to say the combo isn't exactly endearing for extensive use. It's all about that keypad and the quality HP use to put into those keyboards. Without a doubt the Touch screen is the single biggest detraction from calculator emulators.

Dave
 
jbcaro said:
HP 15c, one of the best RPN calcs ever made. I still have mine from school in the mid '80's. Still works like a charm.
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Ditto, mine still works great - didn't know they had gotten so valuable, though. If they drop the price $10 I'll buy for nostalgia alone!
 
HP calculators were the gold standard in the pre and early PC era, not unlike high end Macs today. Included was the premium price.

Thing is, if they could be visually emulated in software in a package the size of an iPhone then AFAIC the price isn't out of line.

I also have used the HP 41C and TI 83 in the past and both were handy gadgets.
 
I still have my 11C. Why don't they make an emulator of that? And yes, for the price these awesome calculators are going for on places like ebay, this isn't too bad a price if it's something you use all the time.

RPN, ftw!
 
I still use my HP-32sII for practically everything.

Bought a HP-48sx a few years ago at Calculator Source just before HP discontinued the model. In retrospect, the gx model, with the plug-in modules, would've been a better buy.

Love to see an HP emulator of both!
 
Looks great.
Less filling.
$15 to $30.
Get real.
What a joke.

Apparently HP isn't aware of the fact that it no longer costs them much money, as in virtually $0, to make a App on a per unit basis. There are plenty of other good calculators out there, including one built into the iPhone. No deal.
 
Oh and another app I wont be downloading.


The app store ....bringing thousands of useless apps to you each and everyday because at apple, its not a quality, Its about quantity.
 
iphones4evry1 said:
Awesome for HP. Although the iPhone comes with a calculator, if an individual is used to using a specific layout of calculator, then they would want the same version on their phone. As a scientist/engineer myself, having an unfamiliar layout can slow speed by half, and this impacts productivity big time. It is necessary to have a layout that the individual is familiar with.
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Exactly. What 90% of the posters here don't seem to understand is that this isn't targeted at them. It's for the people who own and use these calculators on a regular basis, know how to use them, and are very comfortable with them. For that group of users this is ideal.

It's obviously not targeted at anyone else.

I think this is really cool. It's a recognition of how pervasive the iPhone has become, even among the slightly older, more professional crowd.
 
MikeL said:
Exactly. What 90% of the posters here don't seem to understand is that this isn't targeted at them. It's for the people who own and use these calculators on a regular basis, know how to use them, and are very comfortable with them. For that group of users this is ideal.

It's obviously not targeted at anyone else.

I think this is really cool. It's a recognition of how pervasive the iPhone has become, even among the slightly older, more professional crowd.
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I have those calculators.
Why would I bother to waste money buying for such high prices the same thing?
Now, if they offered them for 99¢, yes, I would do it, but not for $15 or more. Ridiculous.

Right market. Great product. Wrong price.
 
branjosef said:
The app store ....bringing thousands of useless apps to you each and everyday because at apple, its not a quality, Its about quantity.
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Hmm... Killing the messenger are you? Apple merely offers HP the opportunity to make an fool of itself by offering over priced old products. If you can't tell the difference then that is your problem. Frankly, I don't want Apple censoring what is available, just categorizing and making it easy to find.
 
pubwvj said:
Hmm... Killing the messenger are you? Apple merely offers HP the opportunity to make an fool of itself by offering over priced old products. If you can't tell the difference then that is your problem. Frankly, I don't want Apple censoring what is available, just categorizing and making it easy to find.
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Your right. I dont mean to imply that apple is to blame. I just think alot of the apps on there are pointless. I don't know where censoring came from. My comment was more directed at the "type" of apps available. They do have alot of apps and that is a big selling point of the app store, but when you get down to it, there isnt much quality to alot of them. There must be over 100 "apps" that are just one touch calling icons that some guy made and instead of lumping them together like some developers, he sells them individually for .99 . I do think they should loosen their restrictions so we can get some really cool apps on there. I think anyone who seriously uses a scientific calculator (I am one of them) would carry one around and not use one on the iphone, but who am I to judge.

This app is a bit gimmicky to me.
 
iphones4evry1 said:
I'm sure school kids would buy the graphing calculator or if HP or Texas Instruments began offering the TI-83 ... except, teachers will probably not allow the iPhone during an exam. So, in the end students will probably need to have a separate HP graphing calculator.
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As a College Math Instructor, on day one I take out my iPhone and talk about how wonderful it is as a phone and that there are many wonderful applications. But then I say that it is a remarkable phone, and phones are not allowed on tests. I don't care if it has a calculator on it. It is still a phone.
 
This is good for HP... their calculators are still seriously good and although something of a niche market, incredibly useful if you have need for them. This is why they're fetching so much on eBay... you can't deny there is a market for them!

So I think this is a good thing - if the software is functionally identical to the way the calculator works in terms of features and so on - then yes, it's totally worth the money.

People seem to see calculators as something that should just be "there" and "free". I agree that a bog standard scientific calculator should be included, as it is, but if you have a need for the additional programmability and functionality that this offers, I think it's worth paying for.

Maybe they should have polished the interface, but nothing wrong with their retro look.

This gets a serious thumbs up from me. Good work.
 
pubwvj said:
I have those calculators.
Why would I bother to waste money buying for such high prices the same thing?
Now, if they offered them for 99¢, yes, I would do it, but not for $15 or more. Ridiculous.

Right market. Great product. Wrong price.
Click to expand...

Heh. Why? Because--get this--you're probably more likely to have your iPhone on you at any given moment than that calculator. And for most people, having it all on their phone is much more convenient than carrying two devices.

You don't understand the market. The people who would use this--you don't appear to be one--will buy at the price listed. It's a small market. If 2,000 copies are sold at $15 that's a far better return than 20,000 copies at 99 cents. Few people who don't know what the original product is would buy it. Those who don't have an existing comfort level with HP's calculators just would not buy it en masse. More user-friendly, intuitive solutions would appeal to them.

This is a narrow market. Sales will be low, by the very nature of the product. The software will appeal to those who already know HP's products. Beyond that... not so much. That's why HP chose to keep the functionality and the look unchanged. There's also the understanding that these are not intuitive products. Set the bar at 99 cents, and there'll be a 2-star average on the reviews because of people who didn't have a clue as to what they were buying.

I know you'll strongly disagree, but that's just due to your lack of understanding. Nobody here has the time to teach you what you would need to know in order to understand.
 
pubwvj said:
Apparently HP isn't aware of the fact that it no longer costs them much money, as in virtually $0, to make a App on a per unit basis.
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Uh, software development does take resources such as programmers, developer kits, computers, etc. It's not free.

Jeonat said:
This is good for HP... their calculators are still seriously good and although something of a niche market, incredibly useful if you have need for them. This is why they're fetching so much on eBay... you can't deny there is a market for them!

So I think this is a good thing - if the software is functionally identical to the way the calculator works in terms of features and so on - then yes, it's totally worth the money.

People seem to see calculators as something that should just be "there" and "free". I agree that a bog standard scientific calculator should be included, as it is, but if you have a need for the additional programmability and functionality that this offers, I think it's worth paying for.

Maybe they should have polished the interface, but nothing wrong with their retro look.

This gets a serious thumbs up from me. Good work.
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I wonder how they will compete with the other HP12C emulators.

RLM and others decent copies if you will that work well.

MikeL said:
You don't understand the market.
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If I didn't already have a 12C emulator (actually 2 of them), I would purchase the HP one. I may still get it.

Thinking about the 15C. Might get it as well.

Glad to see big companies getting involved in app development. 🙂
 
Fantastic. These HP calculators, when they came out, were pretty advanced and very sought after. I still have the 15C my dad bought when it came out. It's my favorite memory of him - always bought tech stuff that he utilized about 50% of it's potential. Has a slip cover case and is in mint condition. Hell, my real estate broker still uses hers. These aren't run-of-the-mill items.

I'll get the 15C to use. I would love for a TI-82 graphing calculator.
 
I don't think anyone apart from people after nostalgia will be purchasing these. Certainly no one that actually does calculations for a living. After all, most people who do the kind of things now that were done by people with these calculators decades ago will be sitting by computers with software like Matlab on, which is a zillion times easier to use and more powerful.
 
Check out Thomas Fors LLC versions on iTunes!

Hi folks,
I went to iTunes after seeing this post, then searched "15c" and found the HP version (for $30) AND another version that has been around a little longer for $20! The $20 version is published by Thomas Fors LLC and has good reviews.

In addition, Thomas Fors has the 12c for $15 (no competition against HP) but he also has ,

the 16c Programmers calculator! I have never used one of these myself, but I saw at least one other poster pining away for one of these! 😀

Review for Thomas Fors calculators are good, and it looks like he may have put in a little more functionality than HP did.
I like the fact that he has replicated the reference information that used to be on the back of the original calculators, nice touch!

I don't think Thomas Fors includes a manual, and instead points you to a site that sells scanned versions of old calculator manuals.
One iTunes reviewer says HP does include a manual, but that it had typos and covered aproximately 1/3rd of the original manual. I have no experience to confirm or deny.

Nice to have ALL of these classic workhorses available for us folks who grew up with them in the 80s along with the original Mac! 🙂
 
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