# Recommend a cheaper equivalent to TI-84 calculator **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 20, 2007, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-cheaper-equivalent-to-ti-84-calculator/419878 "2007-09-20T16:57:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![BarnOwl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e95f7d/32.png) [@BarnOwl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BarnOwl)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-cheaper-equivalent-to-ti-84-calculator/419878/1 "2007-09-20T16:57:09Z")
That’s the message. Hope you can help. ---
**Author:** ![BarnOwl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e95f7d/32.png) [@BarnOwl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BarnOwl)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-cheaper-equivalent-to-ti-84-calculator/419878/2 "2007-09-20T17:05:55Z")
I want to work with Hold 'em formuals. I want to be able to save them, then call up each formula as the circumstances dictate, plug in the variables and get the answers. ---
**Author:** ![BarnOwl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e95f7d/32.png) [@BarnOwl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BarnOwl)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-cheaper-equivalent-to-ti-84-calculator/419878/3 "2007-09-20T17:14:25Z")
I should have added… I want to work with Hold 'em formuals. I want to be able to save them, then call up each formula as the circumstances dictate, plug in the variables and get the answers. The book I’ll be using is Killer Poker by the Numbers, authored by Tony Guerrera. He used a TI-83, but I figure an 84 might be better. But they cost!!! 😃 So please help me already. (Yes, I posted on this many months ago, but now, I’m serious.) ---
**Author:** ![Randy\_Seltzer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ee7513/32.png) [@Randy\_Seltzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Randy_Seltzer)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-cheaper-equivalent-to-ti-84-calculator/419878/4 "2007-09-20T20:01:20Z")
Way back in the day (probably around 1995 or so), I got a TI-82 for Geometry class. I used the same calculator through algebra 2, precalculus, calculus, calculus 2, calculus 3, and differential equations. The thing was built like a rock, and would definitely be able to handle the simple programs you’d want to run. The TI-84 came out around the same time as the 82, and had a (very) few more functions, but was a lot more expensive. While I was in high school, Texas Instruments phased out the TI-82, and replaced it with the TI-83, which was similar, but had a slightly sleeker form factor, and had maybe two or three extra obscure features. So, long story short, get a [TI-82](http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?from=R40&_trksid=m37&satitle=TI-82&category0=) for under $25, and you’ll be able to do pretty much anything a TI-83 can do. You can probably even copy all of his programs directly without altering the language any. ---
**Author:** ![BarnOwl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e95f7d/32.png) [@BarnOwl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BarnOwl)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-cheaper-equivalent-to-ti-84-calculator/419878/5 "2007-09-20T20:52:24Z")
[QUOTE=Randy Seltzer] Way back in the day (probably around 1995 or so), I got a TI-82 for Geometry class. I used the same calculator through algebra 2, precalculus, calculus, calculus 2, calculus 3, and differential equations. The thing was built like a rock, and would definitely be able to handle the simple programs you’d want to run. The TI-84 came out around the same time as the 82, and had a (very) few more functions, but was a lot more expensive. While I was in high school, Texas Instruments phased out the TI-82, and replaced it with the TI-83, which was similar, but had a slightly sleeker form factor, and had maybe two or three extra obscure features. So, long story short, get a [TI-82](http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?from=R40&_trksid=m37&satitle=TI-82&category0=) for under $25, and you’ll be able to do pretty much anything a TI-83 can do. You can probably even copy all of his programs directly without altering the language any. [/QUOTE] Good stuff. Thanks very much. ---
**Author:** ![Ferd\_Burfel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecccb3/32.png) [@Ferd\_Burfel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferd_Burfel)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-cheaper-equivalent-to-ti-84-calculator/419878/6 "2007-09-20T20:58:04Z")
And here I thought you were in the same boat as me, having a daughter starting High School. She not only had to get the TI-84, but the Silver Edition (originally in pink, later returned for black) despite my pleadings that the TI-84 was on sale for 79.99 (without rebate) as opposed to the 119.99 sale price of the Silver Edition. The $30 difference was apparently for triple the memory. ---
**Author:** ![Santo\_Rugger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@Santo\_Rugger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Santo_Rugger)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-cheaper-equivalent-to-ti-84-calculator/419878/7 "2007-09-20T20:58:45Z")
Heck, you can get the 83 for $30… I don’t see the 84 being any better than the 83, and I’m not familiar with the 82. ---
**Author:** ![BarnOwl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e95f7d/32.png) [@BarnOwl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BarnOwl)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-cheaper-equivalent-to-ti-84-calculator/419878/8 "2007-09-20T21:21:38Z")
Have any of you checked out the Casio equiv a the TI-84? Casio CFX-9850GB Plus Graphing Calculator ? > **[Amazon.com : Casio CFX-9850GC Plus Graphing Calculator (White) : Office Products](https://www.amazon.com/Casio-CFX-9850GC-Graphing-Calculator-White/dp/B00004TVDN)** > > Product description Casio (CFX9850PLUS) Casio's premier graphing calculator is clearly the CFX-9850G Plus. Gain unpreced Amazon.com For students in any field, but especially math and sciences, the Casio CFX-9850GC PLUS graphing... It gets excellent reviews. But I’d like your opinion, please. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-cheaper-equivalent-to-ti-84-calculator/419878/9 "2007-09-20T22:23:08Z")
Or you could get a _used_ TI-84… Plenty of them on eBay. ---
**Author:** ![j\_sum1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/8baadc/32.png) [@j\_sum1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j_sum1)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-cheaper-equivalent-to-ti-84-calculator/419878/10 "2007-09-20T22:34:50Z")
I’m a Casio person myself. I have difficulty navigating my way through the menus on a TI machine. (Actually, I dilike the casio too, and graphical calcs in general – give me a pc with a spreadsheet any day.) One thing that did impress meon the TI was the handling of matrices. But for everything else I have seen, the casio does it as well and requires fewer keystrokes. ---
**Author:** ![BarnOwl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e95f7d/32.png) [@BarnOwl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BarnOwl)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-cheaper-equivalent-to-ti-84-calculator/419878/11 "2007-09-20T22:51:05Z")
[QUOTE=j\_sum1] I’m a Casio person myself. I have difficulty navigating my way through the menus on a TI machine. (Actually, I dilike the casio too, and graphical calcs in general – give me a pc with a spreadsheet any day.) One thing that did impress meon the TI was the handling of matrices. But for everything else I have seen, the casio does it as well and requires fewer keystrokes. [/QUOTE] Aha! Bueno, j\_sum1! ---
**Author:** ![steadierfooting](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/43a26b/32.png) [@steadierfooting](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steadierfooting)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2007, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-cheaper-equivalent-to-ti-84-calculator/419878/12 "2007-09-21T01:59:14Z")
I bought a TI-82 freshman year of high school for $100, and though it was a ripoff then. it’s 11 years later, and I bust it out at least once a week at work. I think the cost/benefit makes it absolutely worth putting out the extra money if you feel the functionality is worth it. When I took linear algebra in college I couldn’t do a lot of the matrix functions that the TI-85 had, but at that ‘advanced’ level, I would just use mathcad. Whenever this dies I’ll be on EBAY buying another TI-82. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2007, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-a-cheaper-equivalent-to-ti-84-calculator/419878/13 "2007-09-21T02:22:39Z")
Moving to IMHO. Colibri General Questions Moderator