HP 33 First impression
#1

I bought my first HP (-11c) in 1981, I graduated to -48 and for day to day use, a -32S. All of those are still functional. When I found out, HP has gotten out of calculator business, I searched eBay for future replacements. A -32S goes for about $200. During my recent searches I was surprezed to see that -33S is out. However, I disappointed. WE are Engineers and scientists, we are practical people. We drive Volvos, Hondas and Subarus. The aesthetics of the new machine is horrible. Functinality has given way to fad. A shallow "v" key in the middle, serves no fucntion, and if ergonomics were in mind, , shouldn't the overall keyboards scheme follow an inverted "v" pattern? I was hoping HP's return to the engineering/scientific calculator world would have been more effective.

#2

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#3

I've gotten used to the location of the ENTER key pretty quickly on the HP-33S.

1. Due to its exterior shell, it looks like a TI-30 circa 1980. That is, it's gray metal, not the brown/black we've come to know as the HP colors. However, it feels like an HP, the keys are solid plastic, not rubber and the manual is written for engineers and scientists.

2. I'm a die-hard HP-28S fanatic, but I've given it up in order to be razor-sharp with the NCEES-ordained HP-33S for the October PE exam.

I've been pretty nasty and snarky in past posts about the NCEES and HP-33S, but... I think that in lieu of purchasing a 32S on eBay for a ridiculous sum, you can buy two (or three) brand-new HP-33S' from HP directly, today. I decided that would be the right way to go.

As a digression, I picked up the book "Perfect Enough" - about HP under the CEO-ship of Carly Fionia. The book says very little about calculators, but a lot about the company's recent history.



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