HP35S, 15 years after: which new release for 15th anniversary?

[Roberto Volpi]

2022 will be the 15th year for the HP35S. Not sure whether other HP scientific programmable calculators have lasted longer in production.

In case HP decides to release a new “Jubilee Edition” of our beloved HP35S, which change or new features, put aside bugs correction, would we like to see in it?

[BillBee]

I/O and an SD port would be nice. Being able to have an actual Alpha String for a program name rather than 1 letter. Those would be my starters. Could we dream for a reflashable one?

I like the 35S as a basic scientific calc. Toss in the glove box and go.

-Bill

[Roberto Volpi]

(06-07-2021 02:40 PM)BillBee Wrote:  I/O and an SD port would be nice. Being able to have an actual Alpha String for a program name rather than 1 letter. Those would be my starters. Could we dream for a reflashable one?

I like the 35S as a basic scientific calc. Toss in the glove box and go.

-Bill

Yeah!

But I am afraid that those additions will disqualify it as approved calculators for PE exams and others...

I have the impression that the biggest chunk of its market comes from students with that specific need.

Could I be wrong?

[BillBee]

(06-07-2021 02:45 PM)Roberto Volpi Wrote:  

(06-07-2021 02:40 PM)BillBee Wrote:  I/O and an SD port would be nice. Being able to have an actual Alpha String for a program name rather than 1 letter. Those would be my starters. Could we dream for a reflashable one?

I like the 35S as a basic scientific calc. Toss in the glove box and go.

-Bill

Yeah!

But I am afraid that those additions will disqualify it as approved calculators for PE exams and others...

I have the impression that the biggest chunk of its market comes from students with that specific need.

Could I be wrong?

You are probably correct as the 35s (33s too) were the only HP's currently allowed for the FE/PE. But if the wish list is with the FE/PE approval criteria - give me more memory and an expanded Alpha Title. I use the EQN trick to throw a text string for a descriptor but an actual title would be nice.

-Bill

[Siegfried]

Are you sure it is still in production? It’s not on the US HP Calculator website (though apparently readily available).

A non-shifted STO key would be a nice improvement, as would be a a vertically centered - sign.

[Roberto Volpi]

(06-07-2021 05:47 PM)Siegfried Wrote:  Are you sure it is still in production? It’s not on the US HP Calculator website (though apparently readily available).

A non-shifted STO key would be a nice improvement, as would be a a vertically centered - sign.

Well, I don't live inside HP, but everyone can buy it online, so it is supposed to be still in production.

HP website about calculators has never been promptly updated. Calculators are a very marginal business for HP.

[Pjwum]

Isn't it a product developed by Kinpo Electronics in China and not supported anymore? Sad, despite its undeniable bugs I like it.

[Roberto Volpi]

(06-10-2021 02:35 PM)Pjwum Wrote:  Isn't it a product developed by Kinpo Electronics in China and not supported anymore? Sad, despite its undeniable bugs I like it.

Well, technically speaking it is exactly like that: a Kinpo Electronics calculator with a HP logo.

Nevertheless, I still hope in some revamp. I wouldn't like to see that the RPN scientific programmable calculator has gone the way of the dodo.

[Jake Schwartz]

(06-10-2021 02:42 PM)Roberto Volpi Wrote:  Nevertheless, I still hope in some revamp. I wouldn't like to see that the RPN scientific programmable calculator has gone the way of the dodo.

SwissMicros fills the bill rather nicely, IMHO.
Jake

[Roberto Volpi]

(06-10-2021 02:45 PM)Jake Schwartz Wrote:  

(06-10-2021 02:42 PM)Roberto Volpi Wrote:  Nevertheless, I still hope in some revamp. I wouldn't like to see that the RPN scientific programmable calculator has gone the way of the dodo.

SwissMicros fills the bill rather nicely, IMHO.
Jake

I love SwissMicros products, but I am afraid it just fills the niche of oldtimer HP nostalgics.

Both DM41X and DM42 are superb, but they are clearly small PCs in disguise, and expensive as hell. Only those who have actually possessed and used the famous HP41 and HP42 can feel the shiver, mainly because they recall the good ole times.

It would be great to know what users of SwissMicros calculators think about that.

[Didier Lachieze]

(06-10-2021 03:10 PM)Roberto Volpi Wrote:  I love SwissMicros products, but I am afraid it just fills the niche of oldtimer HP nostalgics.

Is there anybody in the market for a RPN scientific programmable calculator that is not part of this niche? And if so is this a sizeable market justifying the design and production of a new RPN calculator?

It seems that since 2007 the answer has been no.

[Roberto Volpi]

(06-10-2021 03:22 PM)Didier Lachieze Wrote:  

(06-10-2021 03:10 PM)Roberto Volpi Wrote:  I love SwissMicros products, but I am afraid it just fills the niche of oldtimer HP nostalgics.

Is there anybody in the market for a RPN scientific programmable calculator that is not part of this niche? And if so is this a sizeable market justifying the design and production of a new RPN calculator?

It seems that since 2007 the answer has been no.

At least in theory, the HP35S has been designed for students, but I am not sure it is very popular among students of today.

In practice, I am afraid you are right.

[PedroLeiva]

If an update of HP 35s calculator is coming on, I will ask for Coordinate Conversion keyboard key, polar<> rectangular, like HP 25.
Also USB port to communicate with NB o PC for data transfer and battery charge.

Pedro

[Thomas Radtke]

You could make a list from the 2007/2008 comments (debugging, R<>P, base conversions and lots of things I personally don't mind). It was all there.

But it won't happen, of course.

[BillBee]

(06-10-2021 03:10 PM)Roberto Volpi Wrote:  

(06-10-2021 02:45 PM)Jake Schwartz Wrote:  SwissMicros fills the bill rather nicely, IMHO.
Jake

I love SwissMicros products, but I am afraid it just fills the niche of oldtimer HP nostalgics.

Both DM41X and DM42 are superb, but they are clearly small PCs in disguise, and expensive as hell. Only those who have actually possessed and used the famous HP41 and HP42 can feel the shiver, mainly because they recall the good ole times.

It would be great to know what users of SwissMicros calculators think about that.

The real shiver comes from having to press below the lcd of your 42s to power it on, then realizing the DM42 is fairly priced.

[Massimo Gnerucci]

(06-10-2021 03:10 PM)Roberto Volpi Wrote:  I love SwissMicros products, but I am afraid it just fills the niche of oldtimer HP nostalgics.

Both DM41X and DM42 are superb, but they are clearly small PCs in disguise, and expensive as hell. Only those who have actually possessed and used the famous HP41 and HP42 can feel the shiver, mainly because they recall the good ole times.

It would be great to know what users of SwissMicros calculators think about that.

And they still both run circles around the 35S, or any revamped model you can dream of based on it.

[trojdor]

I'd like a way to transfer/backup programs...a faster processor...and more than one character for program labels.
Maybe a little better QC to deal w/keyboard issues, and bugs.
If I were to nit-pick, I'd layout the keyboard differently...but otherwise, that would be my main wish-list.
(...and keep the price low/reasonable.)

mike

[Peet]

2020 was the 41st anniversary of the HP41, I was already dreaming of a 41 retro calculator similar to the 35S, but nothing came from HP but from SM (and it was better than I hoped).
The DM41 is really fun and now I can use my old 41CV programs on a real Calculator again (not just in an app). Although I never owned an HP42S and was never interested in this calculator, I also ordered a DM42 because of the fun with the DM41X. But I see them more than toys than tools .

As a daily calculator, I use the HP 35s and not the two DM models. The reasons: The HP 35s is cheaper (not so bad if it falls or is lost), it is more ergonomic (for a daily driver I like a plastic-back more then metall) and looks much more professionally build (lettering and buttons).

The main things that bothered me about the HP 35s:
- a bad display
- the stripes at the side (design fail)
- the cursor keys (design fail)
AND: no possibility to save programs externally (so I never wrote a program with more then ten lines becaus I remember the day when I lost all programs in my HP28s)

I was hoping for something like a HP 41s. But there came nothing from HP and so I have not much hope for a new 35 homage/successor.

[Steve Simpkin]

I suspect HP does not see a need to change the HP 35s. It's primary requirements were to:

"a) make money,
b) fix the abomination that was the 33s (hey look! It has a modern shape and shiny colors! Look how cool it is!), and
c) to give a nice improvement in capability and functionality while still meeting NCEES requirements."

https://www.hpmuseum.org/cgi-sys/cgiwrap...ead=191740

As long as it still meets those goals, HP probably sees no reason to make a newer version.

[Benjer]

(06-10-2021 03:30 PM)Roberto Volpi Wrote:  At least in theory, the HP35S has been designed for students, but I am not sure it is very popular among students of today.

In practice, I am afraid you are right.

I can only speak anecdotally, but the total number of HP 35S calculators I saw in the wild during my civil engineering undergrad studies (just recently completed) was one: my own. Furthermore, I met perhaps three people who even knew HP made calculators. One of them was an instructor of mine, and my HP 35S was the first he had ever seen.

I ultimately stopped using it in favor of a Casio fx-991EX because the latter was just that much more convenient to use in my surveying classes. It's also the calculator I chose to use for my FE exam.