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I've never thought about the power consumption of TI calculators. I had an 85 and I recall changing the batteries occasionally, but not very often. I also didn'

I've never thought about the power consumption of TI calculators. I had an 85 and I recall changing the batteries occasionally, but not very often. I also didn't find the performance speed to be a hindrance during HS, including on the SATs. What did you use your calculator for that it was noticeably too slow for? How often did you have to replace batteries? I get that there are newer technologies out there, and perhaps it would be a genius startup idea to make a device that's just like a TI, but using modern chips.

callalex 3y ago
With current technology, 4 AA batteries should be able to power a calculator for an entire educational career from 6th to 12th grade, maybe more. Edit: in terms of performance, the buttons and LCD are very unresponsive, you can type faster than they display. When making any kinds of graphs with more than 2 functions, the drawing happens in the order of 5-10 seconds, modern hardware could do that in micro-to-milliseconds and get the CPU back to sleep to save battery. Anything involving regressions of inputted tables can take 10s of seconds, which again feels clunky and eats battery.
- gnicholas 3y ago
  No doubt. But is it a big deal to have to swap batteries once every couple years? I think the bigger waste is that these things still cost so much. I cannot believe that the TI-85 I used over 20 years ago is $70 on Amazon.
  - callalex 3y ago
    I agree, I think my point got bogged down in the details. Declaring scantron dead because the SAT is planning to go digital soon is so clearly out of touch nonsense on its face given how slowly technology is adopted in this space.
    - gnicholas 3y ago
      I dunno, my elementary school kids have never done a multiple choice test on paper. It does require that the schools have enough computers, but these days most schools seem to.
- jstarfish 3y ago
  I always liked the sluggishness. It made me think every operation through before I did it, so I couldn't just bruteforce results through guesswork. And the graph-drawing process was hypnotic. For some models, you couldn't even cancel drawing once it started so you really had to validate your own inputs. Everything about it forced an abundance of caution and efficiency...two qualities overlooked by so many "engineers" rushing through everything they do today.
whimsicalism 3y ago
I mean there are technologies that I think kids should learn that TI can’t even approach. Symbolic integration, for example.
- gnicholas 3y ago
  But would a powerful calculator like that be allowed on the SAT?
  - whimsicalism 3y ago
    Why shouldn’t it be?
    - gnicholas 3y ago
      Well, some TI's aren't even allowed on the SAT. I think the reasoning is that they can solve equations for you. They do allow other TI's that can do this, but only if you format the equation appropriately. If GP is envisioning an even more powerful calculator, then it certainly wouldn't be allowed.
      - whimsicalism 3y ago
        I get that it wouldn’t be allowed on the extant SAT, I am saying the SAT should be redesigned to include higher level questions that allow the use of technology like symbolic manipulators

callalex 3y ago

With current technology, 4 AA batteries should be able to power a calculator for an entire educational career from 6th to 12th grade, maybe more. Edit: in terms of performance, the buttons and LCD are very unresponsive, you can type faster than they display. When making any kinds of graphs with more than 2 functions, the drawing happens in the order of 5-10 seconds, modern hardware could do that in micro-to-milliseconds and get the CPU back to sleep to save battery. Anything involving regressions of inputted tables can take 10s of seconds, which again feels clunky and eats battery.

gnicholas 3y ago
No doubt. But is it a big deal to have to swap batteries once every couple years? I think the bigger waste is that these things still cost so much. I cannot believe that the TI-85 I used over 20 years ago is $70 on Amazon.
- callalex 3y ago
  I agree, I think my point got bogged down in the details. Declaring scantron dead because the SAT is planning to go digital soon is so clearly out of touch nonsense on its face given how slowly technology is adopted in this space.
  - gnicholas 3y ago
    I dunno, my elementary school kids have never done a multiple choice test on paper. It does require that the schools have enough computers, but these days most schools seem to.
jstarfish 3y ago
I always liked the sluggishness. It made me think every operation through before I did it, so I couldn't just bruteforce results through guesswork. And the graph-drawing process was hypnotic. For some models, you couldn't even cancel drawing once it started so you really had to validate your own inputs. Everything about it forced an abundance of caution and efficiency...two qualities overlooked by so many "engineers" rushing through everything they do today.

whimsicalism 3y ago

I mean there are technologies that I think kids should learn that TI can’t even approach. Symbolic integration, for example.

gnicholas 3y ago
But would a powerful calculator like that be allowed on the SAT?
- whimsicalism 3y ago
  Why shouldn’t it be?
  - gnicholas 3y ago
    Well, some TI's aren't even allowed on the SAT. I think the reasoning is that they can solve equations for you. They do allow other TI's that can do this, but only if you format the equation appropriately. If GP is envisioning an even more powerful calculator, then it certainly wouldn't be allowed.
    - whimsicalism 3y ago
      I get that it wouldn’t be allowed on the extant SAT, I am saying the SAT should be redesigned to include higher level questions that allow the use of technology like symbolic manipulators