Monday, January 9, 2017

Retro Review: HP 10B Business Calculator

Retro Review:  HP 10B Business Calculator

Company:  Hewlett Packard
Type:  Financial
Years Made: 1987 – 2000, mine was made in 1987
Batteries:  3 LR 44

Features:
* Time Value of Money
* Cash Flows (up to 15 can be stored)
* Cost-Sell-Margin calculations
* Net Present Value, Initial Rate of Return
* Linear Regression

I paid $3.99 at a discount thrift shop near Winchester, CA.  I saw the calculator at the store one year earlier and as luck would have it, it was still there. It needed new batteries but other than that, the calculator works great.

This is the original HP 10B calculator, then one that started the line of the 10B family (10B, 10BII, now 10BII+).  Keep in mind the current 10BII+ packs much more functionality than its predecessors. 

If you are interested, I have a review of the 10BII+ here (one of the first blog entries in this blog’s almost six year history):  http://edspi31415.blogspot.com/2011/04/10bii-review.html

The calculator operates in Chain mode.  In chain mode, the Order of Operations are not operated on, with each operation is executed immediately. An example is 1 + 2 * 3 returns 9 instead of 7.  However, there are parenthesis.

The DISP acts like the FIX setting command. 

The next generation is the 10BII, which has the same functionality of the 10B.  When I compare the original 10B to its next generation 10BII (not the 10BII+):

* The 10B keyboard is more readable than the 10BII.  I feel that the second shift key on the 10BII is almost a waste given the two calculators have the same functionality.  The purple statistic registers are hard to read.

* I also like the keys on the 10B better, the keys are a pleasure to touch and are responsive.  The 10BII keyboards tend to be harder and on some of the production models, you almost have to press keys hard on the 10BII just to make contact.

* Finally, the style on the original 10B looks professional.  The 10BII looks a little cheaper. 

If you want to buy a 10B calculator, I highly recommend the original over the second generation 10BII. 

Eddie

This blog is property of Edward Shore, 2017.


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