Review: TI-84 Plus
CE
 |
| TI-84 Plus CE |
Calculator Information:
Calculator: TI-84
Plus CE
Manufacturer:
Texas Instruments
Twitter: @ticalculators
Price: $119 - $135
Availability:
Currently online through select distributors. I purchased mine from the Bach Company
(website: http://www.bachcompany.com/
). For a complete list of vendors, check
the Texas Instruments calculator website at http://education.ti.com/en/us/purchase/purchase . It should
be available at popular retail stores, in many colors, by the time the next
school year (2015-2016) comes around.
Current OS:
5.0.1.0012.
What’s in the package?
TI-84 Plus CE, standard mini-USB charging cable,
calculator to calculator cable, warranty information, getting standard guide
(fold out card), and a short operation manual (fold out card). The full manual is found online from the TI
Calculator website.
If you want to see a video introduction of it, click this
link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F7OAG3dNpzE
Key Features:
* For those of you
new to the TI-83/84 Plus family, the TI-84 Plus CE is the latest incarnation. Like 2013’s TI-84 Plus C Silver Edition, the
TI-84 Plus CE is a color graphing calculator, that has a rechargeable battery.
* If you know how to operate any of the TI-83 or TI-84
calculators and are considering either an upgrade or adding this calculator to
your collection, you will feel right at home operating the TI-84 Plus CE. In general, you have the same interface and
syntax (for most commands). The best
part is that the TI Basic programs (with few exceptions) can easily be
transferred to the TI-84 Plus CE from older calculators.
* Mathematical features:
Mathematical: All
the standard scientific functions, integer and fractional part extraction,
numeric derivative, numeric integral, numerical summation, and numerical
solver.
Complex Numbers:
arithmetic, power, roots, exponential, and logarithmic.
Graphing:
Function, Parametric, Polar, Sequential
Matrices: Up to 10
matrices can be stored. Operations include determinant, transpose, inverse, row
operations, and generation of identity and random integers.
Lists: 6 default
list names but you can add more. List
operations include cumulative sum, sum of the list, dimension, and change
between elements.
Statistics: 1 and
2 variable. The regressions available
are med-med, linear (two forms), quadratic, cubic, quartic, exponential,
logarithmic, power, logistic, and sinusoidal.
Programming: TI-Basic, Assembly, and Applications.
Distributions:
Normal (with inverse), T (with inverse), Chi Square, F, Binomial,
Poisson, and Geometric.
Colors: Up to 15
different colors for graphing and displaying text can be used.
* Memory: Archive 3
MB (1.92 MB available after the OS and default included apps), RAM: 154,000 bytes.
* Applications Included:
Finance (basic), CabriJr (geometry), Conics, Vernier EasyData (for
classroom peripherals), Inequalz*, Periodic (table), PlySlmt2 (polynomial and
simultaneous equation solver), Prob Sim (probability simulator), SciTools*, and
Transfrm (dynamic graphing by including A, B, C, etc in functions).
Inequalz: Run this
app and you are able to graph inequalities as well as equalities complete with
shading.
SciTools: This
adds constants, conversions, and vector operations. Vector operations are 2D and are drawn. Operations available are addition,
subtraction, dot product, and cross product. Data/Graphs wizard is a statistics
interface.
MathPrint vs. Classic:
You can operate the TI-84 Plus CE in the classic mode, which the way
older TI-83 Plus calculate, or in MathPrint.
In MathPrint, you can express calculations using templates. With the faster processor, I don’t really
think there is any advantage to using Classic mode any more (except for maybe
to get used to syntax required for programming).
 |
| TI 84 Plus CE in action |
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| SciTools app in action |
What I like the Most:
* I am loving the increased amount of RAM that the TI-84
Plus CE has. It has the most ram of any
incarnation of the TI-83/84 family.
154,000 bytes are now available compared to the small 21,000 bytes that
the TI-84 Plus C Silver Edition offered.
* The new software that is associated with the TI-84 Plus
CE is the TI Connect CE. Features
include easily being able to take screen shots, transfer files, and even
editing programs in the Connection software.
TI Connect CE works with the TI-84 Plus family and the TI-83 Plus fr
(France’s edition of the TI-84 Plus), and TI-83 Premium CE (France’s version of
the TI-84 Plus CE).
* The TI-84 Plus CE is at least three times faster than
the predecessor. And this is
welcome. The CE gets a new 48 Mhz ez80 processor.
The internal RAM has doubled from 128 KB (which 21 KB-24 KB was available for
the user) to 256 KB (154 KB available to the user), allowing for faster
calculations.
* It may be settle, but I detect a better key press
response rate.
* Like the previous C Silver Edition, the screen is crisp
and clear. The text is very easy to
read.
* This is the thinnest TI-84 calculator ever. Yet the CE fits comfortably in my hand and
the keyboard is large with easy to read keys.
‘* The
QuickPlot&Fit-EQ feature (present on the previous C Silver Edition as
well). To use it, press the [graph]
key. The press the [stat] key, scroll
up, and select E: QuickPlot&Fit-EQ under the CALC submenu. Drop points using the [enter] key. Once you are done, press [graph] (FITEQ) to
fit the points. Select the appropriate
curve and the curve is plotted. You can see whether the curve plotted works. Results can be stored.
 |
| QuckPlot&Fit-EQ in action: I love this feature! |
Being Nit Picky?
* The graph screen still has a border from the previous C
Silver Edition. I was hoping the
calculator take advantage of the entire screen that the monochrome 84s did.
* I would really
still like to see vector functions make the Math or Vector menu, as well as trigonometric
functions being allowed to handle complex numbers. Maybe a future update? (You can see my wish list here: http://edspi31415.blogspot.com/2015/05/ti-84-plus-wish-list.html
)
For a more technical review, please check out KermMartin’s
review at cemetch.net: http://www.cemetech.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=11434
Verdict:
If you have been waiting to get a color graphing TI-84,
then the wait has paid off. The TI-84 CE
is a delight to use, and the operation is fast and responsive. I think only the black case TI-84 CEs are available,
if you really want to have the CE in another color (red, dark blue, light blue,
pink, purple, or gray), then it is a wait until Back to School season.
If you do not have a TI-84 and either are interested or
need to get one for school, the CE is the version to consider, because you get
the color, backlit screen, the rechargeable battery, and a large amount of RAM
(user memory).
I think Texas Instruments has a winner with the TI-84
Plus CE.
Eddie
This blog is property of Edward Shore. 2015.