Real Calc vs Emulator - My Experience

[StephenG1CMZ]

I don't have an up to date real calculator so I'm not comparing like with like.

The pros of the real calculator (a ti83) :
Physical touch and feel.
You know it will work offline.

The cons of the real calculator:
Have to find a shop that sells one.
Zero connectivity (for me - although not if you have a budget for add-ons).
So typing everything in.
So unable to check results online or publish programs.
So no browsing or WiFi.
Also, need to be wary of shops selling old stock or not releasing version numbers. For example, you might have heard that the Casio Cg50 has Python. The original in the shops doesn't, you have to repair it first.

The advantage of the emulator (HP Prime on Android) :
Easy to update (but sometimes too easy - cannot regress to a working version).
Good connectivity (compared to real device, loading/uploads programs and data are possible - though not easily accomplished by a novice. It could be much better).

The disadvantage of the emulator:
Doesn't work offline so I'm looking for a new calculator (only some Android's have this bug).
The language changes with many updates (no backwards compatability, though hopefully that will be less of a problem with Python).
No Python.

The speed of the emulator is different to the real device (faster on my phone, which can be good, but also nonstandard).

Conclusion:
With the real device, you have an extra gadget to carry or forget, so you often won't have it when you need it.
With the emulator, there's nothing to remember, you'll think you have it until you try to use it and find it's broken or changed. But if it did work, the emulator would be preferred (unless I have add-on instruments). .