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I wondered if there was a comprehensive features/functions chart somewhere that compares these three models. If so, where can I find such a chart?

Not that I am aware of.

However, the differences are very slight.

HP48gII: Non-standard Serial port, 131x64 dot matrix LCD screen, 48Mhz ARM, 128K ram (80K available to user). Silver color.

HP49g+: USB port, 131x80 dot matrix LCD screen, 75Mhz arm, 512K ram, 1MB flash ram (800K or so available to user), SD card slot. Gold color.

HP50g: same as HP49g+, except USB port AND serial port. Black color.

So why buy a 50g?

Quote:
So why buy a 50g?

To have the latest and greatest gadget? To generate more profit for HP?

Seriously though, some may find the serial port essential, even though it's really not "RS232", but rather uses 3.3V TTL signal levels.

In my opinion, the keyboard and faceplate legibility is better, and I prefer it cosmetically.

If you don't already have a 49g+, it makes a lot more sense to buy a 50g+, unless maybe you can find a 49g+ a lot cheaper.

If you buy a 49g+, unless you can check the serial number first, it's hard to tell whether it has the improved keyboard.

Regards,
James

Also, the 48gII operating system ("ROM") really is ROM; it's non-updatable. The 49G, 49g+, and 50g can be updated, because the "ROM" is actually stored in flash memory.

Regards
James

PS:

The 50g requires 4 AAA cells instead of only 3. See
http://groups.google.com/group/comp.sys.hp48/browse_frm/thread/96e4695744e66f37/
for some discussion of this.

The 50g can be powered by a USB host, or presumably a 5V power
supply to the 50g's USB port. It may warmstart if the USB host is
powered down or up while the 50g is plugged in though; see
http://groups.google.com/group/comp.sys.hp48/browse_frm/thread/e36da17f68ad1782/.

The serial port includes a 6V (nominal) power line, supposedly
connected directly to the battery, for whatever a user has the
ingenuity to use it for. Presumably the 50g could also be powered
through this connection (with the battery removed), or with
rechargeable cells installed, a battery charger could be connected
here.

The case is held together with screws (although concealed under
the display cover) instead of heat stakes. See
http://groups.google.com/group/comp.sys.hp48/browse_frm/thread/a78fc4f5444673e5/
for information on removing the screen cover without damaging
anything.

Regards,
James

Thanks, James, for the updates and differences between these calcs. I already have a 49g+ with ROM 2.00. After I updated the ROM, the keypad problem went away and I have been happy ever since. I actually like its color and layout, etc. and don't use a serial port. So until the "collector" side of me gets around to buying it just to have in my collection, I'll just be happy with the 49g+.

Thanks again!

Quote:
some may find the serial port essential, even though it's really not "RS232", but rather uses 3.3V TTL signal levels.

Minor nit - it uses 3.3V CMOS signal levels.

Thanks, it seems the 50 is the way to go. BTW, is there Macintosh software/sync stuff to go with it or is the connectivity software Windows only?

Quote:
Thanks, James, for the updates and differences between these
calcs. I already have a 49g+ with ROM 2.00. After I updated the
ROM, the keypad problem went away and I have been happy ever
since. I actually like its color and layout, etc. and don't use a
serial port. So until the "collector" side of me gets around to
buying it just to have in my collection, I'll just be happy with
the 49g+.

Thanks again!



You're welcome, Stephen. Indeed, if someone already has a 49g+ and
is happy with it, I wouldn't recommend that he buy a 50g, although
it does have some improvements.

I do recommend that you update the ROM to revision 2.09 (build
92) though. This ROM is for both the 49g+ and the 50g; I surmise
that it detects which hardware it's installed on. See
here
for the download and installation instruction page, or
this
is a link to the .zip file itself (which now includes the new
equation libraries).

About the equation libraries: First off, they can be considered
optional; if you don't want them, then simply purge libraries 226
and 227 from port 2, and recover about 67KiB in that port. The
libraries supplied with ROM revisions lower than 2.08 use
unsupported entry points, so they're dependent on the ROM
revision, and in particular, won't work with revision 2.09. The
libraries included with the 50g and ROM revision 2.09 use only
supported entry points, so work with any 49 series ROM, at least
back to revision 1.18. So, if updating a 49g+ (presumably with a
revision lower than 2.08), then replace (or purge) libraries 226
and 227 in port 2; if updating a 50g (originally supplied with
revision 2.08), the libraries don't need to be replaced, although
you could purge them to recover some capacity in port 2.

Regards,
James

You're welcome, Matt.

Yes, if someone is going to buy a 49g+ or 50g, then the 50g
certainly seems to be the better choice. The only circumstance
where I'd recommend the 49g+ is when it can be verified that it
has the improved keyboard, and it's substantially cheaper. See
this
comp.sys.hp48 thread
for information on which serials have
which keyboard. I don't know whether prices for the 49g+ have
dropped, but it seems reasonable to me to expect that they should.

I doubt that the 50g would be supplied with communications
software for the Mac, but see Michael Heinz's HPConnect
application at http://hpconnect.sourceforge.net/.

I believe that communication software for use with Linux is also
available, but I don't know a URL for it.

By the way, I've read several reports of problems with the version
(v2.33 Build 2434) of Conn4x included on the CD with the 50g. For
MS Windows, you might better use v2.2 build 2353, available
here,
or at http://www.hpcalc.org/.

Finally, if you get a 50g (or 49g+, for that matter), then I
recommend that you update the ROM to the latest revision; see my
latest response to Stephen.

Regards,
James

Quote:
Minor nit - it uses 3.3V CMOS signal levels.

I stand corrected then; my electronics skills are mostly 2 or 3
decades out of date, and sometimes it shows.

In any case, although connecting a 50g directly to another device
that uses the same signal levels should work, a level shifter is
needed to connect it to a real EIA-232 (RS-232) port.

Note that a USB cable is included with the 50g, but no "serial"
cable is included. For any do-it-yourselfers, something built
around low-power chips such as the ICL3221 or MAX3221 series seems
ideal to me. Other than that, Precision Surveying Solutions (Tim
Wessman's outfit) might offer a custom-made cable. See
http://www.pssllc.com/ and this
comp.sys.hp48
thread
.

Regards,
James