Eddie’s Math and Calculator Blog:
Retro Review: Casio fx-7400g Plus
Specifications
Time: Early 2000s, I have the early style where all
the keys are rectangular
Screen: 48 x 80 pixels, 6 x 13 text
Power: 2 AA batteries with 2032 backup
Accuracy: 10 digits shown on screen, 15 digits
internally
Memory: 20,000 bytes for programming (despite the 32K label on the calculator)
The calculator
feels pretty good to hold, it is lightweight.
A Scaled Down fx-9850g
The fx-7400g Plus
is a simplified version of fx-9850g family, marketed as entry level graphing
calculator. The features have been
scaled down. As a result the fx-7400g
Plus lacks matrices, distribution functions, numerical integral, and polar
graphing.
Casio is known
as for their icon menus and the fx-7400g is no exception. Here is the icon menu:
1: Run
|
2: Statistics
|
3: List
|
4: Graph
|
5: Table
|
6: Program
|
7: Link
|
8: Contrast
|
9: Memory
|
For statistics,
the fx-7400g offers the following regressions:
linear, med-med, quadratic, logarithmic, exponential, and power.
Curiosities of the fx-7400g Plus
Instead of the
usual six function keys (F1 – F6), the fx-7400g Plus has four function keys,
with two of them replaced with [ G<>T ] (graph-table switch) and [ > ]
(next menu page). I don’t know if the
[G<>T] key is used today, but it is used two switch between the graph and
home screen. Today, the command only
works when the current Casio graphing calculators (like the Prizm fx-CG 10) is
in the Linear Input/Output mode.
When a program
is executed, the calculator is returned to the Run mode rather than stay in
Program mode. Exit program execution by
pressing [AC/ON].
When Program
Mode is entered, all the programs are listed chronically (when they first
created). There is no option to sort the
programs alphabetically.
The fx-7400g
handles calculations pretty quickly.
Programming on the fx-7400g Plus
The programming
command set on the fx-7400g Plus may be scaled down, but most of the commands
we expect on the Casio Graphing calculators are present. The lack of matrices, complex numbers, and a
simplified list command set does provide a challenge, but we should be able to program
for a lot of applications.
To get the
quotes ( “ “ ), press [ALPHA] then [ F2 ].
This is the only way to get the quotation marks.
Programming
Commands Available (not exhaustive):
[“prompt”]? → var
◢ (right triangle)
: (colon for multiple commands)
|
If
Then [Else] IfEnd
Cond ⇒
do if true: next
Do
commands LpWhile cond
While
cond commands WhileEnd
Dsz var: do if var ≠ 0: stmts (-1)
Isz
var:
do if var ≠ 0: stmts (+1)
Goto, Lbl
|
Break (break from loops)
Prog
“filename” (subroutines)
Return
Stop
|
ClrGraph
ClrList
ClrText
DrawStat
DrawGraph
DrawTable
|
Fortunately any
of the programs created on the fx-7400g Plus can be translated literally to
later Casio graphing calculators.
I will present
programs on next blog entry.
Final Verdict
The fx-7400g
Plus is not a bad entry-level calculator.
The early version is more an old-school graphing calculator.
The updated
fx-7400gII Casio now includes integral, polar graphing, base calculations, and complex
numbers. ( Link: https://edu.casio.com/products/graphic/fx7400g2/
)
Happy Thanksgiving!
Eddie
This blog is
property of Edward Shore, 2016.
