current 50g displays

[Wes Loewer]

I have a 50g that I bought in 2007 and I bought my son a 50g in 2009. The 2007 screen was very much like my 49g+ screen with a neutral color with good contrast. The 2009 screen has a slight reddish tint with a lower contrast that is noticeably more difficult to read. Even at the best contrast settings, I have a more difficult time reading the screen.

I am considering getting another 50g, but was wondering about the current models. Can anyone who has purchased a 50g in the past year or two tell me about the screen? It would be even more informative if you also have an older model to compare it to.

Thanks,
-wes

[Jlouis]

(03-17-2015 09:36 AM)Wes Loewer Wrote:  I have a 50g that I bought in 2007 and I bought my son a 50g in 2009. The 2007 screen was very much like my 49g+ screen with a neutral color with good contrast. The 2009 screen has a slight reddish tint with a lower contrast that is noticeably more difficult to read. Even at the best contrast settings, I have a more difficult time reading the screen.

I am considering getting another 50g, but was wondering about the current models. Can anyone who has purchased a 50g in the past year or two tell me about the screen? It would be even more informative if you also have an older model to compare it to.

Thanks
-wes

I have a 2014 50g and it is not reddish, and it has good contrast. My only conplain is that it could have bigger font, like the 48g (With a screen that size, why so little font?)

I know my nephew has a 2007 50g, that I bought for him back then, so I will try to compare, if he still has it.

Cheers

[Gilles]

(03-17-2015 09:36 AM)Wes Loewer Wrote:  I have a 50g that I bought in 2007 and I bought my son a 50g in 2009. The 2007 screen was very much like my 49g+ screen with a neutral color with good contrast. The 2009 screen has a slight reddish tint with a lower contrast that is noticeably more difficult to read. Even at the best contrast settings, I have a more difficult time reading the screen.

I am considering getting another 50g, but was wondering about the current models. Can anyone who has purchased a 50g in the past year or two tell me about the screen? It would be even more informative if you also have an older model to compare it to.

Thanks,
-wes

I use both a 49G+ and 50G. My 49G+ unit has a slightly better contrast than my 50G. It is a slight but noticeable difference. But the 50G screen is good enough and very 'readable'

50G : CNA63805727
49G+ : CN40601355

But both are "older" models.

[Tugdual]

I acquired a 50G 2 weeks ago, screen is good. No reddish reflection but there is still not much tolerance on angle and the straighter you are, the better.
Unless you have a very good deal, why don't you consider a Prime instead?

[Eddie W. Shore]

(03-17-2015 09:36 AM)Wes Loewer Wrote:  I have a 50g that I bought in 2007 and I bought my son a 50g in 2009. The 2007 screen was very much like my 49g+ screen with a neutral color with good contrast. The 2009 screen has a slight reddish tint with a lower contrast that is noticeably more difficult to read. Even at the best contrast settings, I have a more difficult time reading the screen.

I am considering getting another 50g, but was wondering about the current models. Can anyone who has purchased a 50g in the past year or two tell me about the screen? It would be even more informative if you also have an older model to compare it to.

Thanks,
-wes

The latest one I have was purchased around 2010-2011 (CNA 10200194) and the contrast is good.

[Wes Loewer]

(03-17-2015 12:31 PM)Tugdual Wrote:  I acquired a 50G 2 weeks ago, screen is good. No reddish reflection but there is still not much tolerance on angle and the straighter you are, the better.
Unless you have a very good deal, why don't you consider a Prime instead?

Thanks for the info.

Actually, I have a Prime and it's a very good calculator. I would definitely recommend it to my math students over a 50g. But for my own use, I find that I'm more efficient on the 50g for general calculations. (Can't beat the Prime for graphing though.) I've got years worth of custom menus and custom key assignments (click, double click, long hold, shift long hold, shift double-click, ...) that I'd really miss if my 50g died. (I've already performed three "surgeries" on it to keep it going.)

For my physics students, I'd recommend the Prime even more if it could natively display vectors in polar, cylindrical, and spherical coordinates like the 50g does (and like the Prime does for complex numbers with the Shift-X key --- that's really nice).

I just figured that with the current prices and uncertain future availability, now is the time to get that backup 50g.

-wes

[Voldemar]

I received my HP 50g yesterday. Display is OK - good contrast, easy to read.
I have blue version. One thing - the screen looks shifted to the left. This is crearly seen in Eddie's photo on his blog http://edspi31415.blogspot.com/2012/08/t...tures.html

Eddie has wonderful HP 50g tutorials on his blog. For a beginner like me very helpful, thank You, Eddie.

[Tugdual]

(03-17-2015 01:24 PM)Wes Loewer Wrote:  Thanks for the info.

Actually, I have a Prime and it's a very good calculator. I would definitely recommend it to my math students over a 50g. But for my own use, I find that I'm more efficient on the 50g for general calculations. (Can't beat the Prime for graphing though.) I've got years worth of custom menus and custom key assignments (click, double click, long hold, shift long hold, shift double-click, ...) that I'd really miss if my 50g died. (I've already performed three "surgeries" on it to keep it going.)

For my physics students, I'd recommend the Prime even more if it could natively display vectors in polar, cylindrical, and spherical coordinates like the 50g does (and like the Prime does for complex numbers with the Shift-X key --- that's really nice).

I just figured that with the current prices and uncertain future availability, now is the time to get that backup 50g.

-wes

You seem to have a more sophisticated use of the tool than me and I know how it feels to change. I used to have a 15C and with the light speed 15C LE it was even more difficult to envisage a change. Now I have to confess that the 50G is a very nice toy but for the work I do, a 35S is more than enough just because it is somehow more specific. I find myself more efficient on the 35S while the smallest thing on the 50G requires a lot more key strokes. Somehow I found that it compares to the Prime for the lack of efficiency...
Having current unit conversions immediately accessed on the 35S keyboard, different bases and easy coding is really all I need; also the size is better (though smaller would be even better). 50G is extremely fun to use but I'm not sure I'll ever be quick on that one. To be fair, when things become a little bit more complex, I switch on PC. So the calculator is more like a reliable keyboard, clear screen, small shape and as much as possible of all the things I need with one (max 2) key strokes.

I dream of a virgin calculator kit that you would completely customize to your needs. E-Ink for keys and board, total freedom for keyboard definition, a number of libraries you can upload to customize it exactly to your needs... I'm sure that is possible with nowadays technology.

[Jake Schwartz]

(03-17-2015 03:15 PM)Tugdual Wrote:  I dream of a virgin calculator kit that you would completely customize to your needs. E-Ink for keys and board, total freedom for keyboard definition, a number of libraries you can upload to customize it exactly to your needs... I'm sure that is possible with nowadays technology.

Perhaps great minds think alike? Back at the HP Handhelds Conference in 2005 in Chicago, the winner of that year's HP Design-A-Calculator contest showed us his proposal of just a machine, with e-ink keys and keyboard:



...none other than future HP Calc team member Tim Wessman.

Jake

[matthiaspaul]

(03-17-2015 09:36 AM)Wes Loewer Wrote:  Can anyone who has purchased a 50g in the past year or two tell me about the screen? It would be even more informative if you also have an older model to compare it to.

I bought a black 50g last year to accompany my good old 48GX. Though bought as "used" (for just 40 EUR), it was in prestine condition and still came with early firmware, so it must have been manufactured in ca. 2006/2007, bought and then shelved away for years. Although I still prefer my 48GX for its better keyboard (both layout- and haptics-wise) and general build quality, the 50g is technically the better machine, and somewhat ironically it being less than perfect renewed my old interest in calculator design in general (otherwise, I wouldn't be here, I guess ;-).

Since I am not particularly fond of the low contrast of the black 50g's label colors, I bought a blue 50g in January (69 EUR new) just to try out the alternative color scheme - and I must confess, that whilst the blue color scheme needs some time getting used to it, it is by far not as ugly as it looks on most photos of the calculator I have seen on the web. More important, (though still not perfect) the labels are much easier to read in dim light, and since the layout isn't as logically arranged as on the 48GX (which is for the most part very intuitive and thus easy to memorize), this makes the blue unit easier to use than the black one in practise.

So, I have an "old" black and a "new" blue 50g. Except for the color, they both look identically down to the embarrassing typos on the coin cell battery cover ("Memory Backup battery!!" #-| ). Both displays are black without any reddish tint. Just in case it matters, both are "CNA" units.

I just wished HP would have chosen an optically better display cover glass with proper anti-reflective coating.

Greetings,

Matthias

[Gerald H]

(03-18-2015 02:30 PM)matthiaspaul Wrote:  

(03-17-2015 09:36 AM)Wes Loewer Wrote:  Can anyone who has purchased a 50g in the past year or two tell me about the screen? It would be even more informative if you also have an older model to compare it to.

I bought a black 50g last year to accompany my good old 48GX. Though bought as "used" (for just 40 EUR), it was in prestine condition and still came with early firmware, so it must have been manufactured in ca. 2006/2007, bought and then shelved away for years. Although I still prefer my 48GX for its better keyboard (both layout- and haptics-wise) and general build quality, the 50g is technically the better machine, and somewhat ironically it being less than perfect renewed my old interest in calculator design in general (otherwise, I wouldn't be here, I guess ;-).

Since I am not particularly fond of the low contrast of the black 50g's label colors, I bought a blue 50g in January (69 EUR new) just to try out the alternative color scheme - and I must confess, that whilst the blue color scheme needs some time getting used to it, it is by far not as ugly as it looks on most photos of the calculator I have seen on the web. More important, (though still not perfect) the labels are much easier to read in dim light, and since the layout isn't as logically arranged as on the 48GX (which is for the most part very intuitive and thus easy to memorize), this makes the blue unit easier to use than the black one in practise.

So, I have an "old" black and a "new" blue 50g. Except for the color, they both look identically down to the embarrassing typos on the coin cell battery cover ("Memory Battery backup!!" #-| ). Both displays are black without any reddish tint. Just in case it matters, both are "CNA" units.

I just wished HP would have chosen an optically better display cover glass with proper anti-reflective coating.

Greetings,

Matthias

My typo is different: Memory Backup battery!! (& on 49G+)

[matthiaspaul]

(03-19-2015 05:18 AM)Gerald H Wrote:  

Quote:Except for the color, they both look identically down to the embarrassing typos on the coin cell battery cover ("Memory Battery backup!!" #-| ).

My typo is different: Memory Backup battery!! (& on 49G+)

That's right. :-)

Greetings,

Matthias