Texas Instruments TI-89 Advanced Graphing Calculator
by Texas Instruments
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Our Price: $249.25 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $49.94 (click here) Category: CE See more product details |
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Texas Instruments TI-89 Advanced Graphing Calculator
Customer Review: Is the ti-89 the right ti for me?
Summary: 5 Stars
I'm a Senior Electrical Engineering student, and I've owned nearly the entire ti-8X line. Based on my expierince the ti-89 is worth the money for two distinct groups of people.1) Lazy people. The 89, when used properly, does almost all of the Algebra that one would encounter in non-calculus based algebra class. It also does most of the calculus that one would see in their first three semesters of college calculus. Thanks to this machine I've forgotten huge amounts of the calculus that I once knew.
2) People who need its power. This calculator is almost neccesary for Electrical Engineering majors at my University. It can do impressive amounts of complex domain algebra, numeric differential equations, symbolic algebra and calculus etc.
Who shouldn't buy this calculator?
1) People who aren't willing to learn how to use it, and don't need its power. The 89 is fairly intuitive, but still takes some getting used to. If you don't want to spend a nerdy afternoon learning to use your new investment, then you're cooler than me, and should get something cheaper.
2) Lazy People. It's really really tempting to not learn something in a Math class because your calculator can do the operation. In the long run you will get in trouble doing this and the 89 is a very tempting tool in the hands of the indolent.
Do your calculus and model scenarios too!
Summary: 5 Stars This is my first graphic calculator, and had no idea what to expect. My only comparison is against desktop computer software like Mathematica or MATLAB (which run US$1,000 or more). I started with simple matrix algebra, saving me hours of checking my arithmetic and remembering Gauss-Jordan rules. I moved onto statistics and probability, with a finance point of view, then tried a few partial differential equations. Impressive so far, I was very happy to see that a few book publishers have printed short textbooks on math topics using the TI-89 (e.g. calculus, linear algebra, statistics, etc). Being a long-time computer programmer, and working in the field of finance, I wanted to give this calculator a run for its money. Buying an extra device that allows me to write programs on my desktop computer and copy them to the calculator, I was writing formulas that did equity option pricing (no small task, considering the calculus involved) in no time. My formulas work as if TI had installed it with the calculator itself. Later, I was plotting 3-D scenarios of the option valuations, requiring a little more time than desktop software to plot, but still exemplary for a hand-held device. The numeric solver did a wonderful job finding solutions to functions I had long given up on without the use of a computer. Overall, this calculator exceeds my inital expectations, and is a valuable aid to learning mathematics in ways I never imagined.
Customer Review: Oh TI-89 how do I love thee? Let me count the ways
Summary: 5 Stars
1) arithmatic calculator functions: cause I'm too lazy for 6*7 in my head2) entry memory : ever forget how you arrived at your answer? Your TI89 stores up to the past 80 calculations you've done
3) graphing functions: oh so much easier to do math when I can see the problem... function, polar, differential, parametric, sequential, even 3D graphs
4) algebra support: x^3 + 42x^2 - 8x + 2.1 = 0 ... forget factoring by hand : x = -42.1907945554 of course!
5) data tables: set up matracies, lists, and other data stuff...
6) units: A MUST for a science student... put in all your units and it will convert them
7) Calculus capabilities: differentiate, integrate, find limits (and MORE) of functions you type in!
8) Numeric solver: type in your own equations and plug in the numbers... KE = 1/2 * m * v^2
9) Easy interface, very intuitive
10) Seemingly limitless capabilities: download programs from the internet and load them on to your calcualtor (my favorite: the Periodic Table, with lots of data on each element). (you need the TI-graph link for a PC-Calculator hookup)
11) You CAN use them on SAT1, SAT2s, APs, and many other standardized tests.
11 reasons doesn't come close to how much I love this calculator! If you are or will be taking any of these classes I highly recommend the TI-89 : Calculus I, Calculus II, Statistics, Physics, Chemistry, ... and beyond!
Customer Review: Great calculator... except for price
Summary: 4 Stars
Granted, the TI-89 is great for everything it does, along with having a slick interface and loads of great features. However, it bothers me that this is the exact same TI-89 friends of mine had four years ago when I was starting high school. Now, starting college, I'm getting that exact same calculator as was top of the line four years ago. And know what? It was the same price then as it is now at about half the retailers who carry it. What also bothers me is that there is no real competition to this calculator besides another Texas Instruments calculator, as the HP 49 was long ago vanquished. With PC processing power doubling every year-and-a-half, and with other handheld technology developing at leaps and bounds (cell phones, PDAs, handheld computers, portable video game consoles, digital cameras, etc.), one would expect some sort of advancement in the high-end collegiate calculator industry... but no, we are forced to deal with this retention in a technology field.Obviously, this is not a problem of Texas Instruments so much as of their competitors and of venture capitalists out there who are not challenging TI's hold on the market, so it would be unfair to penalize TI for being really... unbeatable. How ironic.
Pro: So good, no worthy competition
Con: No worthy competition, so no alternatives: BOW DOWN TO TEXAS INSTRUMENTS YOUNG MATH/SCIENCE MAJOR
Customer Review: Great features, nice size, good price
Summary: 5 Stars
The TI-89 is an excellent calculator. It has an absolutley HUGEfeature set, and is so advanced that it can basically do most math for you. My favorite features are the CAS (computer algebra system), which can solve a lot of algebraic equations for you, and the factoring function (I dont have to waste time factoring on paper anymore! whoohoo!). My old ti-83+ seems like a slide rule compared to this thing, but the 89 is still quite easy to use. In addition, not only is this calculator great for math, its great for games! There's a multitude of mathematical programs and games that you can find for free online. . . The only downside to this calculator is that the rich feature set can actually be a problem. A lot of students that use this calculator rely on it too much, and some of them barely understand any of the math that they are supposed to be learning. It is probably for this reason that it and its brother the TI-92 (difference between the TI-89 and TI-92 is the 92's qwerty keyboard, useless for a calculator in my opinion,and the 89 is smaller) are banned in some colleges, and on some tests, like the ACT's. If you've got the discipline not to rely too much on this fine piece of equipment (if you're a student), I highly recommend this calculator. But be warned, keep your old calculator around for tests that you can't use your 89 on, and NEVER rely to much on it.