HP-65 40th anniversary edition

[JuanJ]

(01-16-2014 09:08 PM)Michael de Estrada Wrote:  

(01-16-2014 08:48 PM)JuanJ Wrote:  Serial number on mine is 1333A0..., which puts the production date around August 1973.

Those "date codes" are pretty much meaningless, and tell you very little about when the calculator was actually manufactured. I have four HP 80 calculators ranging from the first version 1 all the way up to the last version 4. They all have exactly the same S/N prefix "date code" of 1247, but clearly they were not all manufactured in the same 47th week of 1972. I suspect that HP simply printed out a bunch of blank S/N labels with the "date code" somewhat close to the printing date, and then added the sequence number that follows the country code during the actual production runs. One thing is certain; the calculator manufacturing date is later than the "date code." Notice that the 1333A on your S/N label is printed in a different font than the sequence number. BTW, the S/N on my HP 65 is also 1333S....

Hello,

I had to delete the original reply. Never try to access this forum from an Android device, ask me how I know.

Yes, the serial number is 1333A0... I understand about identification limitations, and prefer not to overthink it. These numbers are intended to track down assets/devices/equipment to some extent, nothing else. I know the HP-65 was available in 1974, but I like to think it was made the year before. Anyway, there must have been a production run during the second half of 1973 to meet demand after its introduction in 1974.

Numbers aside, my 65 was well used by its first owner and then put to storage in a garage. I bought it some 12 years ago, complete with some accessories and Application Pacs, as well as software written by the previous owner. I enjoyed repairing the card reader. The motor's worm gear required some cyanoacrylate layers, as indicated in the Museum's article, to fit the reader assembly properly. The calculator has performed flawlessly ever since.

It went to storage (again) but a few years ago I brought it back and now it sits on my desk at home. It gets used often, sometimes daily.





Juan