

HP releases iPhone versions of classic calculators - zimbabwe
http://www.macworld.com/article/141364/2009/06/hpcalcapps.html?lsrc=rss_main

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jpeterson
When do I get an iPhone TI-85 app, so that I can play tetris like back in
calculus class?

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bitwize
You can't. It can run third-party program code, and so violates the AppStore
ToS.

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joezydeco
So does that mean you can't program these HP emulators? I see the [R/S] key
right there in the screenshots.

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ctkrohn
That's really funny. The HP-12C is still extremely popular at work. I could
never bring myself to get used to it -- I still use my TI-89 from college --
and I get a lot of flak from the rest of the office.

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bcl
Tapping into the nostalgic geek market? As much as I like the HP 15C, I'm not
spending $30 for an iPhone version of it. They need to re-evaluate their
price.

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ankhmoop
I think their price is more-or-less reasonable in terms of the value provided
and in comparison to application pricing for other mobile platforms:

[http://www.berryreview.com/2008/04/22/review-calculator-
apps...](http://www.berryreview.com/2008/04/22/review-calculator-apps-
part-2-bizmathica/)

[http://www.berryreview.com/2008/07/31/calculator-apps-
part-5...](http://www.berryreview.com/2008/07/31/calculator-apps-
part-5-powerone/)

iPhone application prices are unsustainably low. I find the $30 price point to
be a very encouraging sign.

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jimboyoungblood
Just curious- in what respect are the prices unsustainable? Couldn't one as
easily argue that the Blackberry app prices are unsustainably high?

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ankhmoop
Unless you produce one of the very few 'hits', you'll lose money developing a
$1.99 application.

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menloparkbum
you lose even more money developing an application that costs more than $2.99
- because nobody buys them.

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ankhmoop
If that's the case, then the market is unsustainable. Players will fail,
causing scarcity, raising the value of applications, and conditioning users to
expect to pay more.

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gchpaco
The noise it makes when you push the keys is repellent but it is very close
otherwise to the HPs I remember. I really want a 41CX, tho.

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kqr2
For me, the ultimate HP calculator was the HP41CX. You could even hack it
using a technique called "synthetic" programming.

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HP-41>

I even had the magnetic card reader so I could store programs.

In my opinion, RPN gave me a big speed advantage at school during exams.

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xinsight
hpcalc has been a project on google code since 2008. (Yes, you need a
developer's license to build and install it - or know a developer who can
build you an ad hoc distribution copy)

<http://code.google.com/p/hpcalc-iphone/>

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mvbma
what good is that? I don't want a virtual HP-11C. I want real buttons (hint,
hint).

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zimbabwe
So far nobody's invented a device that's capable of shape-shifting, so
replicating the interface via touch is as good as you can get without actually
buying the calculator.

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hypermatt
OMFG I WAS ABOUT TO SAY "BEST DAY EVER" and then I realized the 48g with RPN
wasn't there ;(

