HP 39gs without serial number – worry?

[metawops]

Greetings fellow HP calculator nerds! ?

I just acquired a "new" (not really) HP 39gs which was missing in my little collection.

I noticed very soon that the serial number sticker on the back was missing. Strange ... but maybe it just got loose.

However, when I did the "hold + and - and the reset button for app. 3 seconds" trick I saw this on the screen:

   

So the calculator actually has no serial number! Bummer! How can this be? What did I buy? Is it genuine HP? How would I know? Do I need to worry? Or do I have a rare special collector's item? ?

Curious ... Any hints?

[BillBee]

I did read that there were fakes. No sticker and no serial #s.

https://www.hpmuseum.org/forum/thread-10551-page-2.html

But, I've not seen one and cannot confirm.

-B

[ijabbott]

Question is, how much did you pay for it?

Mine is the same version and no serial number. I originally got it to play around with NewRPL, but never got round to it!

[ijabbott]

Incidentally, now every time I turn my HP 39gs on (which I had not used for a year or so previously) it beeps and displays this message for about 3 seconds:

Code:

Warning:
Invalid Card Data

Any idea what that means? The only unusual thing I have installed is the RPN aplet.

[rprosperi]

I've heard conjecture that the manufacturer that made these machines for HP, let a few 'slip out the back door', and these would almost certainly have no serial numbers as including them would only make them easier to trace.

Perhaps this is just someone's fantasy, but it seems to fit the facts, and this would not be the first time a manufacturer, Chinese or otherwise, resorted to such tactics to help pay the bills.

End of the day, if you got it cheap, ignore these comments and move along, enjoying your new machine.

[SammysHP]

Either some extra production, or the first units when they still adjusted the process. Or they were rejected in quality control (mine has a display issues and I've seen some with scratches etc).

For only $15 they were awesome. What you can find now costs much more.

[lmamakos]

I bought a number of cheap HP 39gs calculators from China that were missing the serial number plate on the back. They seem identical enough to a "real" HP 39gs that I was able to install newRPL on them, and it works just fine.