50g

Actually, the 49 keypad quality was the biggest issue. The keys "broke" after 
about 5 years - much less time than most of us die-hard fans expected. The 50g 
corrected most of these quality problems, and the 48 line was great, but 
outdated in the end. There were also some issues with the mechanisms for 
storage, chips and chip emulators, programming languages, etc. Most HP engineers 
I know adopted the calculator after using RPN for a few years, then bought 
sub-standard HP calculatos to replace the old ones

HP would be well served to start from the ground up and develop a new device 
that satisfies the technical requirements of scientific, engineering, and 
economic professionals. Something incorporating iPad, iPhone, and hard-coded 
advanced calculator functions would be ideal. And the keypad is a big deal. HP 
needs to discard the "consumer electronics" model and build the calculator to be 
an industrial tool. Perhaps core interface hardware with replacable processing 
cores / motherboards. As Joe suggests, QWERTY keyboards are the de facto 
standard for personal computers, and the mouse, while evolving, has been pretty 
static in basic function for about 30 years. Now we have touch-screens to add to 
the mix (most of which are two-finger operable), so it expands the possibilities 
further. Small would be nice, but an i-Pad equivalent screen (or perhaps half 
that) may also be acceptable.

Another market to address is proctored academic and professional exams. It needs 
to be possible for a proctor to rapidly "lock-out" and verify compliance of a 
calculator for exam security. Put the core calculator function in the interface 
device, then detach it for the exam?

While low price is a nice thing, Apple proved that fully-featured electonics can 
sell at the $500 price point, and since I own my own business, this is a VERY 
small expense compared to software subscription costs I pay. Maybe the core 
calculator interface could sold separately?

Here's an idea: why don't we start designing end-use specifications for a 
calculator, build grass-roots support, and then request that HP build it?

Keith Erick Fix
Principal Engineer
Red Pepper Consulting, Inc.
10201 W. Markham St.
Suite 215
Little Rock, AR 72205




________________________________
From: Joseph Colannino <joecolannino@...>
To: 50g@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Sat, April 23, 2011 11:24:58 PM
Subject: Re: [50g] what happed?

  
The problem with the 50G was the change in the position of the enter key.  HP 
blew it with the change and underestimated customer resistance to it. Microsoft 
committed the same faux pas when it rearranged the Excel user interface.  For 
the same reason, the qwerty keyboard remains popular despite its shortcomings.  
This lesson has been repeated so often that you would think HP would have 
figured it out.  But it didn't, and the 50G has declined in popularity because 
of it.

Joe 

-----Original message-----

From: Brian Denley <b.denley@...>
>To: 50g@yahoogroups.com
>Sent: 2011 Apr, Sun, 24 03:49:19 GMT+00:00
>Subject: Re: [50g] what happed?
>
>Jennifer:
>As are we all. The only calculators that even command high prices on Ebay 
>are the older HPs: the 41C line especially, or the 15, 16 C 'sideways' 
>calculators. The HP-25 was still my favorite!
>Brian
>http://home.comcast.net/~b.denley/index.html
>
>----- Original Message ----- 
>From: "Jennifer Usher" 
>To: 50g@yahoogroups.com>
>Sent: Saturday, April 23, 2011 9:15 PM
>Subject: Re: [50g] what happed?
>
>
>There may be some truth to that. I currently have emulators for the HP 48gx 
>(two actually), the HP 41CX, and an HP 16C on my iPhone. That is in 
>addition to several scientific calculator programs. Even HP itself has 
>started marketing an emulator for the HP 15C for the iPhone. I also have HP 
>48gx emulators on both my PC and my Mac. I bought my HP 50g because there 
>are times when I still want a standalone calculator, and well, because I am 
>a major geek.
>
>Jennifer
>
>On Apr 21, 2011, at 4:56 PM, Brian Denley wrote:
>
>> ..or it might be that there IS no real calc market anymore.
>> Brian Denley
>> http://home.comcast.net/~b.denley/index.html
>>
>> ----- Original Message ----- 
>> From: "Alan Golightly" 
>> To: 50g@yahoogroups.com>
>> Sent: Thursday, April 21, 2011 7:45 PM
>> Subject: Re: [50g] what happed?
>>
>> Not sure. The HP50G user base must be really small. I guess TI has the 
>> calc
>> market sewn up.
>>
>> ________________________________
>> From: Ray 
>> To: 50g@yahoogroups.com
>> Sent: Thursday, April 21, 2011 5:08 PM
>> Subject: [50g] what happed?
>>
>> what happed to this site, no post in 3 mo.?
>>
>>
>
>
>
>
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