[bluepod4]

Have you seen the newer calculators? TI does still sell the older calculators but the newer ones have color screens at least. The interface is different (from my 2000s TI-83+ and TI-89) too.

Also, I would have appreciated the app/online version when I was in school. The iPad app looks really nice. I felt a bit of jealousy when I saw it lol. I know you mentioned College Board’s calculator rules and iPads obviously wouldn’t apply but you were also speaking about the calculators in general.

But are the calculators actually “shitty”? I have fond memories of my TI-83 and TI-89. They worked well. I don’t recall being annoyed by anything. But also I don’t tend to complain about things like this. Never have. For example, is a high schooler really complaining that much about battery consumption for their calculator? I don’t recall this at all in middle school or high school.

I can see though how the general student could benefit from something slightly better. I can also see how these calculators would feel outdated to a current high school student. I just don’t think they were or are that bad lol. But again, I’m not one to overexaggerate things in the first place lol.

[didntcheck]

It's also worth considering their competitors. My experience in the UK system was that TIs were a rarity and most people used graphing calculators from Casio (if they felt the need for an upgrade from a scientific calculator at all), which were cheaper, lighter, widely available in any good stationery section, and appeared more feature-rich (better screens with intuitive menus, built-in SD card slots, and probably better processors). In particular some TIs I saw lacked graphical equation display, which would be a deal breaker, exotically when our existing £15 scientific calculators had made it a basic feature

There was no requirement from the schools or exam board to use a particular brand. In theory you could do everything you needed with a basic scientific calc like the ubiquitous FX-83GT (and many people did), and the only real rule was "no computer algebra systems" (I believe the TI-89 was given as an example of a disallowed calculator). In fact the teachers were somewhat discouraging of graphing calculators at all, saying you can get one if you feel the graphs help you, but you shouldn't need anything more than what you had in GCSE

[gnicholas]

In the US, students were allowed to use the TI-89, but not the TI-9X, which. Had a QWERTY keyboard but was otherwise identical. The 89 could solve equations, but the 85 and 86 could do the same, if you inputted them in standard form (y = mx + b). It could also solve simultaneous equations, again if you standardized the formatting. This was definitely a useful feature, beyond what scientific calculators could do.

[gnicholas]

It would have been lousy if the calculator just stopped working without notice. But my recollection is that you could tell when it was getting low on batteries because the display would get faint. Ah, the memories...

[function_seven]

Yeah, those things had 9 levels of contrast. With a fresh set of batteries the display would be crisp and contrasty at “3” or something. Then slowly you needed more and more levels to feel normal. Before you know it you’re running at contrast “9” and contemplating your next score. Then you realize, “oh yeah, batteries are on their way out.”

As you snap the final AA place, you sign contentedly as you dial it back down to “3”.