Hewlett Packard HP-49g Plus
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Hewlett Packard HP-49g+
- Type: Programmable RPN/Algebraic Electronic Calculator
- Size: 3.5 x 7.5 inches / 8.5 x 18 cm
- Serial number: CN40212458
- Date of Manufacture: January 2004
With faux leather magnetic clasp soft case and abridged manual. The 49 series replaced the 48 series with more memory, more canned applications and a Secure Digital card slot for backups. Gone is the Saturn processor of the 28 and 48 series, and in is a StrongARM processor. Boy is this thing fast! The math features have been extended to include arbitrary-precision integer math (you can ask for and receive the factorial of 1000) and proper handling of infinity (you can put infinity on the stack! But usually you just use it as bounds for numeric integration). This is almost The One Thing in calculators.
The one problem is HP has gone to a new manufacturer for the physical unit. The keys aren't reliable (I have to keep keyclick on for added feedback). The whole feel of the unit is inconsistant with the previous 30 years of HP calculator history. The included documentation is an abridgment of the real manual (available, below, as a PDF). Even the "real" manual isn't a complete document, leaving out a large fraction of available programming features. I had to use my 48's programming manual to fill in the gap.
Apologies to Carly Fiorina for letting those pesky calculators distract her from her real goals. Whatever they were. Really, if you're too busy making cheap PCs and trying to take over the world with inkjet printers to create serious engineering tools, maybe you could spin the division off to someone who cares.
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