HP 15C Financial Calculator - Collector's Edition

I had one of these when they were originally launched, back in the early 1980s and loved it. I used it for my A’Levels and degree but sadly had it stolen. By then it was no longer available on the market. When I saw that a Collector’s Edition was available I was so excited. I was a little concerned that Amazon has it described as a Financial calculator but after looking carefully at the images and sending off a quick question it was confirmed that it was the 15c Scientific calculator so I had to buy it. The build quality is superb, the keys are so nice to use, the lcd is crisp and clear and the landscape, Voyager, format is such a joy to use. It also comes with a full and comprehensive manual, something of a rarity today. It might seem expensive for a scientific calculator but in fact it is worth every penny. It is a powerful scientific calculator with programming capability. Matrices, polar and stats are all available. And the RPN logic is so powerful and, once you’re used to it, is so intuitive. Since the calculator no longer has the sapphire on silicon NUT processor, the battery life might not be measured in decades but it will still be impressive.

Even though excellent it is NOT a financial calculator but a scientific one…

I always wanted one of these and I am not disappointed with this re-release. It is much faster than the original version and it comes with a reprint of the original manual and a (fake) leather pouch. All in all a good buy!

I was looking forward to receiving my HP15C Collector’s Edition as a replacement for an original HP15C that was damaged by a leaking battery. However, I am extremely disappointed to find the HP15C LE sent to me suffers from a known problem with the keyboard. There is a “keyboard bounce” problem, that is sometimes pressing a key does not register, other times multiple entries of the number pressed appear on the screen or functions are applied multiple times. It happens at random. This means I have to pay close attention to correct entries or repeat calculations. With these issues I have no confidence the result of a calculation is correct. An earlier Amazon review also highlights this issue with the calculator. Perhaps I should have paid more attention to this. There is a discussion of the problem and a solution to fix it by applying a firmware upgrade, the details can be found by searching for HP calculator discussion/forum groups on the internet. Apart from downloading the updated firmware you need a specific interface cable. Also a download and software installation on your computer to transfer the firmware to the calculator. At the time of the review this software/firmware is free. However, the cable costs approx. 30 Euro’s, once taxes, shipping to the UK etc. are included. As far as I can tell Amazon do not sell the cable. So in order to fix the calculator that cost 110 GBP I now have to buy an expensive interface cable. There is also the risk that there is no guarantee the upgrade will work and I may invalidate any warranty I have. Hardly the experience I was expecting! I am disappointed that I have to criticise the product in this way. I have used HP calculators for many years without any issues. The presentation box and booklet are of good quality but in the end the calculator itself has a known fault. A replacement may have the same issue so I have returned the calculator and Amazon have agreed a refund.

The keybounce problem makes this device risky for critical calculations. Unfortunately although there's supposed to be a firmware fix, you need to purchase a programming cable to apply it. This isn't available in the UK and costs nearly £40 ordered from overseas. I was going to return it, but as I said, it is beautifully made and I've decided to order the cable and update the firmware, because the calculator itself is very nice. It's much faster than the original and the keys have that lovely click you associate with vintage hp calculators. EDIT: The firmware update completely resolved the keybounce issue. You have to therefore budget for the programming cable when purchasing this device. But you do then get the benefit of being able to copy programs to and from a PC with the cable which is a very useful feature. Also the firmware update fixes the HP16C bug so probably worth the extra money

Nice in many ways but the example I received has scratches above the display and a dent. Perhaps it wasn't new maybe a return. Bit disappointed I was looking forward to this...

This machine was wonderful! So why only 1 star? It stopped working too quickly. At this price, even with a full refund, that was inconvenient.

1980年代後半米国留学中にHP-15Cを購入しました。ヘビーユーザーではありませんが、既に40年弱使用しています。壊れず未だに使えているのですが、他に代え難いデザインと逆ポーランド記法とキータッチが大好きなので、今回HP-15C Collector's Editionを購入しました。かなり割高な価格でしたが、hpロゴが付いている点もファンにはたまりません。コレクター仕様ですが普段使いしています。復刻されて演算速度が速くなっているそうですが実感できません。キータッチは少しソフトになっている感じです。iPhoneのエミュレーターアプリも使っていますが、エミュレーターではキータッチは再現できません。マニアしか買いませんよね。故障したら修理できるのかなぁ？

In het begin van de jaren 80 was de HP 41C de rekenmachine die iedereen wou hebben maar slechts weinigen zich konden veroorloven. Deze 12c is de opvolger van de opvolger en een heruitgave... aan een prijs waar ik me tegenwoordig helemaal niet druk over maak. Het is mijn standaard rekenmachine geworden. De handleiding is van een ongezien fantastische kwaliteit (en ik mis dat bij nieuwe rekemachines heel erg. Ook de handleiding van een HP prime vind ik maar niets). Alllen de toesten zijn niet van de kwaliteit die je op de oorspronkelijke HP machientjes vond.

Härlig retro räknare och supersnabb leverans.

Calcolatrice certamente di elevato costo (la qualità vedremo se è paragonabile al passato), anche troppo. Disolito il punto debole sono i tasti ed è presto per dirlo, però si spera che l'iniziativa continui e che la bustina (dato il costo elevato) sia di pelle vera oppure che si renda disponibile after-market. Ormai pochissime calcolatrici adottano la logica RPN, che però consiglio a tutti, essendo educativa del pensiero tecnico e scientifico oltre ad essere ottima per allenarsi a comprendere alla sequenza di calcolo ottimale. Unico miglioramento atteso: prezzo un po' troppo elevato.

Ich versuche es mal: Ich habe das Gerät vor ca. 7 Monaten gekauft und bin in der Arbeit (Physiklehrer) vollständig auf den hp15c ce umgestiegen. Und ich muss sagen, ja, man kann den Rechner, mit etwas Eingewöhnung auch 2025 noch produktiv nutzen. Ich habe auch einige Programme darauf geschrieben (hatte davor keine Erfahrung mit Keystroke Programmierung aber relativ viel "normale" Programmiererfahrung) und ja, auch das kann man tatsächlich auch heute noch effektiv nutzen. Aber: natürlich mit einem Faible für alte Technik und objektiv betrachtet ist ein TI30x II Pro einfach besser und günstiger. Aber darum geht es ja nicht. Was mich fasziniert: Ein Turing vollständiger "Computer" um Taschenformat und RPN die einem tatsächlich dazu zwingt, Formeln zu verstehen und nicht einfach einzutippen. Zum Gerät: Das Thema Key Bouncing wird immer wieder angesprochen. Ja, man kann es provovieren (übrigens auch bei einem TI30*). Aber und das ist wirklich das wichtigste: Man muss als User sich einen "knackigen" Tippstil angewöhnen dann funktioniert er, zumindest bei mir, Fehlerfrei. Das liegt auch an dem alten Tastenstil, der aber eben bewusst an das Original angelehnt ist. Ich habe auch das Firmware Update durchgefüht was die Sache sicher noch einmal verbessert hat und hatte auch das Gefühl, dass es mit Gebrauch besser wurde. Ich habe mir ein kleines Testprogramm geschrieben, mit dem ich potentielles Key Bouncing testen kann und habe bei ca. 1000 Anschlägen pro Taste eine Fehlerquote von 0 %, wenn ich richtig tippe. Also zumindest mein Gerät ist in Ordnung. Mathematisch hat der Rechner alle Funktionen die ich benötige, allerdings sind viele Funktionen nicht intuitiv und auch nach längerem Gebrauch muss ich noch regelmäßig in das Handbuch schauen (Gibt es auch auf Deutsch zum Download inkl. dem 2. Band). Mein Fazit: Ein toller Rechner für Leute mit einem Faible für Retro Technik der auch heute noch zuverlässig eingesetzt werden kann. An die Eingabe muss man sich gewöhnen, aber wenn man sie verinnerlicht hat ist RPN wirklich genial und, und das ich für mich das besondere, man muss bei der Eingabe wirklich denken und nicht nur tippen.