Customer Reviews

TI-30XS Multiview Calculator

5 star:		(51)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I recently got this exact calculator as I started up my Electronics college course. It's been nothing but amazing for me. Viewing multiple problems and answers at a time is good, but browsing your entire history with the arrow pad is great.

It intuitive too. While brosing through my previous entries, I found a few different answers that I wanted to plug in together and get the sum. I browsed my way up to one, and on a guess, hit ENTER. It placed that number in my new problem at the bottom. Okay, lets see if it will do it again... I hit PLUS, then browsed up and got another old answer. It not only remembered what I'd input so far on the new problem, but put my next selection exactly where I hoped! All this is probably in the manual, but this is so well designed, there are many cases like this example where things just work out the way I think they should.

One negative on this calculator is the CLEAR button and the DELETE button. I'm glad they spaced them apart, but they put the CLEAR button where I would think they'd put DELETE. And vice versa. I've looked at other Texas Instrument calculators, and this seems to be the convention... maybe it's just me.

I appreciate their use of the button "x10^n" instead of the "EE" button. I had no idea what EE would be without finding it in the manual, but I knew right away what to expect when I hit x10^n.

Lastly, this calculator's design and wording have been a great stepping stone for me, to get past the gap between dinky little arithmatic calculators and heavy-duty graphing calculators.

Highly recommended. Incredible buy.

Update: I wanted to add that the Casio FX-115ES is a SCIENTIFIC AND NON-GRAPHING CALCULATOR (same class as the TI-30XS MultiView) that handles everything the TI-30XS Multiview fails to cover such as integrals, derivatives, complex numbers, phasors, different log bases AND matrices.

I had been researching calculators for use on standardized exams now that many of the graphing calculators are banned.

The HP 33/35 calculators are too expensive and too "antiquated" to be of any use to me. I liked the TI-30XS MultiView because of the large display, but I later found out the 30XS MV lacked many features found on the Casio FX-115ES scientific non-graphing calculator and even other TI graphing calculators. After evaluating the FX-115ES scientific non-graphing calculator and TI-30XS MV, I came to the conclusion that the FX-115ES scientific non-graphing calculator is by FAR the superior calculator.

The TI-30XS MV is too basic of a calculator. I'd recommend it for elementary school use, perhaps even for algebra. For example it is unable to evaluate integrals or differentials and there is no direct option to select different logarithm bases using the 30XS (every second counts on a timed exam and I'd rather buy a scientific non-graphing calculator that handles different logarithmic bases directly). The 30XS also lacks the ability to process matrices which the Casio FX-115ES scientific non-graphing calculator does process. The 30XS does not recognize the imaginary domain, hence the lack of "i" or "j" (try to do square root of -1). This makes the 30XS useless for engineers that have to deal with the imaginary domain for vectors, polar math, etc... especially on timed exams. That reminds me, the 30XS cannot handle phasor angles intuitively. There's a whole menu system for angles that I have yet to figure out. One would imagine the creator of the TI-8x graphing calculators would make a half-way decent scientific calculator, but instead we end up with a children's calculator. In case you haven't noticed, the Casio FX-115ES scientific non-graphing calculator is clearly superior and performs many functions that are omitted on the TI-30XS.

Pros: Affordable scientific calculator, dual-power supply (Solar and battery), TI interface (intuitive for existing TI users), nice display

Cons: Funky hard-cover (doesn't slide in place like all other TI calculators), lack of a large number of important features. There's also a limit to how many characters or instructions you can put into a single line. I was adding up my grocery list and it ran out of memory.

Bottom line: I recommend looking at the Casio FX-115ES scientific non-graphing calculator instead of the TI-30XS MultiView, although the TI-30XS MV isn't physically a bad calculator. I just felt it was a child's toy compared to the Casio FX-115ES scientific non-graphing calculator.

I had always used Casio and this is my first TI. My "objective" verdict after using this for 2 years: It has a few good points but on the whole is a rather mediocre model. For what I do on a daily basis, though, I am fairly happy with it.

Pros:
1. This is the most important for me. You can "drop down" results or entire calculations from a previous run anywhere into your current run. This way you can break down complex calculations into smaller chunks and simply drop them into subsequent calculations without having to save each result to memory and trying to recall the correct one each time. You can also scroll up many sets of calculations to review your previous numbers. The drop down feature, I think, is very unique to this.
2. Mathwrite: Many newer models have this so it is not a "set apart" feature but you can basically enter calculations exactly the way it is written on paper.
3. Statistics: 3 column data entry in the form of a table. Again not unique. User friently but not very efficient.
4. Build quality: This one is built like a tank. You can simply feel it.
5. Square root: It automatically puts an open parantheses which is convenient. A TI thing. Casio does not.
6. The cover: Some have said the closing and opening the lid is wierd. It was, initially. Now I am used to it, and actually kind of like it. More secure than a sliding cover.
7. The "What is this?" factor: The design, looks and color of this thing has attracted quite a few curious colleagues to my desk to ask about it. Sets it apart from the old HP RPNs, the fancy graphing calculators, the ho-hum Casios and the oh-yet-another TI.

Cons:
1. Bulky: For a calculator of otherwise average features, this one is large and bulky and I don't think there is an excuse for this. You cannot fit this into an average shirt pocket.
2. Speed: For no reason at all, after many calculations, an hourglass will appear on screen for several seconds even as you are typing and the screen freezes up. It can be annoying when you are in a time crunch and want some quick numbers. I have resorted to routinely clearing the memory after several repeated complex calculations especially in Mathwrite mode. It has helped a little but does not completely avoid the problem.
3. Keyboard layout: This I have realized is a TI thing. After using Casios for so many years, I have only one word to describe the keboard- CHAOS. Often, I have to search around a bit for a particular function like "log" or "pi". There seems to be no rhyme or reason for the way the keys are organized. On a Casio or Sharp, functions are organized and grouped together in a very logical manner. The "E" or "x10^n" key is somewhere in the middle of all the functions even though it is probably one of the more used functions. Should you not have it down below next to the numbers?
4. The "E" key: To enter 2E3, you type in 2 - x10^n - 3. Now if you need to do (2E3)2, you type in 2 - x10^n - 3 - x^2. Right? Wrong. That gives you the answer for 2 - x10^n - 6. Ridiculous. On a Casio, you simply type in 2 - E - 3 - x^2. Again, a TI thing and long time TI users are probably used to it but I think it is illogical.
5. The Ans key: You need to hit the shift key located on the top left corner and then the "ans" key located on the bottom right corner. Irritating. Sharp I believe uses the same layout.
7. The "Ans" approach: You can type in "+ 20" and it will automatically treat it as "Ans + 20". But you type in "sin" or "sqrt" and hit enter, it will NOT treat it as "sin(Ans)" or "sqrt(Ans)". There will a "Syntax Error". Casio will work just fine.
8. Wasted real estate: There are two keys that essentially do the same thing- convert fractions to decimals and vice versa.
9. The scroll pad: Small, hard and inconvenient. When you drop down stuff from previous calculations, you scroll up using the pad which is located on the top right, then hit enter which is on the bottom right. Bad layout.

Verdict:
My gripes about this calculator essentially boil down to its keyboard and input design. My "deal-sealer" for this calculator is its drop down feature. For what I do on a daily basis as an aerospace engineer, nothing beats it. It is almost like an RPN - Algebraic Entry love child. On the whole, I think it is a very mediocre calculator and a college student may be well-advised to get a Sharp or Casio. Yes, some of their models are built cheap and "plast-icky" but gone are the days when an engineer held on to his precious HP RPN calculator for decades like a rare treasure. Unless you are particularly careless with your stuff, even these calculators will last several years. If you are worried about it breaking down during your test, buy another one for back up. They come cheap. Ultimately, how good a calculator is depends on what the user wants from it. You could spend a 100 dollars getting a top-of-the-line model and use only 2% of its capabilities.

Hope this helps.

I really love this calculator. The screen is larger than normal-sized scientific calculators and Texas Instruments is a very good brand. It definitely allows me to do my work much faster, which is especially helpful on tests.

PROS:
Ability to see other variations of the same answer
Solar and battery powered
Worked out of the pkg, no batteries needed
Nice size buttons for big thumbs
Comes with a small manual that shows you some basics
Ability to see previous calculations (up to 14, I think)
Lightweight
Seems very durable, come with a cover
"Mathprint" view of inputted calculations [LOVE THIS!]
Contrast control of screen


CONS:
No other color options offered, only blue
A little big, about 6.5" tall and 3.5" wide

It is definitely a bargain at the price being offered if you do not need graphing capabilities! I have been very pleased.

I just bought this from staples, I already have a Ti-30X IIS and the only reason I wanted this one was because of the multi-view and the keyboard feel. I'm a student in college and I need my calculator to be reliable and the 30X IIs has spongy keys which sometimes don't register. I also have a TI-89, I LOVE THIS CALCULATOR..however it's not accepted at universities. So, I looked into getting this calculator. I like this calculator because it has great lay out, GREAT key feel, (you actually have a solid pronounced feel of hitting a button vs. a spongy push)nice style (though who cares) and it has a nice memory/log of what you've been typing in. The downs side is that I need to use the powers of 10 key quite often. After buying this calculator (the Ti-30XS) and I have found out that when using the *10^n key, it uses that as if you wrote x10^3 (EX- 3*10^8 / 5*10^-7 should be 6*10^14 however if you write this in the calculator as shown, it will come up as 6. What it basically does is ((3*10^8)/5)*10^-7, which will give you a completely wrong answer. To get around this you can hit the parentheses button and group things together but on my Ti-30X IIs I don't have to, so why do I have to here? The reason: because instead of putting an EE key they half assed it for all those idiots out there who don't know what EE stands for and substituted it with this key. Personally, I hate having to type extra things and I would keep this calculator if it had an EE key vs this stupid 10^n key. I don't know why both multiview scientific calculators have this key and this issue but it's really annoying. I would think logically since they are very similar that one would have an EE key and one would have the idiot key. If you're used to typing parentheses in for EVERYTHING then I would say go for it, however if you're not and you tend to have long tests and seemingly not enough time to take them then I would suggest going a different route. Hope this helps.


*UPDATE* 9-17-2011
I bought the new Ti-36 Pro, and I absolutely love it! I love it so much that it got stolen/lost at work that I went out and bought a second one. The EE key is fixed, there's a ton more features such as solving quadratics, anti-derivatives, fractions you name it. This is by far the best scientific calculator TI has made yet! The next best would be their graphing calculators. I love it. So in short Don't get this one, get the TI-36x Pro (from amazon, Staples can't keep them on the shelves even though they sell them for $25.00)

This is by far the best calculator for the actuary exams out there. The keyboard is very responsive, the table option is extremely useful, and the way you input numbers is very intuitive. Also you're never worried about running out of batteries because it's solar powered. All in all a very good investment.

Looks like everyone else wrote nice reviews about the functionality of the calculator. So, I'll comment on a personal quirk I look for in calculators. Crunchy keys. Love the crunchy keys on this calculator! I can't stand soft keys since I seem to make more errors inputting quickly on soft keys. So there you go. Anyone who's likes crunchy keys like I do might appreciate the crunchy keys on this calculator.

I gave my sister my TI-84 graphing calculator after switching out of college engineering...I had been using a TI-84 for three years and the TI-30XS has exactly the same feel as a graphing calculator. The font is the same and very readable and it has almost every function of the TI-84 including sin, cos, tan, e^x, ln, etc. This $14 calculator even has some features the TI84 lacks--MultiView the most useful. On the TI-84, an expression might appear as (2-3x^2)/(4-1/(2x)), but this bargain calculator formats it like you'd write in on paper, exponents, fractions and all.

The calculator has probability functions, including nCr, factorial!, and log/ln. It can do roots bigger than 2 without having to write ^(1/3) for the third root for example--it writes a small three, and puts the number/expression UNDER THE ROOT LINE, which is extremely helpful. You can also input an expression like y=sqrt(x+2) and the calculator outputs a table with coordinates, starting with x=1,2,3, etc. You can change the "steps" between x-values, as well as just put in any x-value and see the corresponding y-value. This feature is very powerful and quite useful.

Just a word of caution: the T1-34 (a similar product) is more expensive, uglier, and has a horrendous button layout--for example, to compute the sine, cosine or tangent you must go into the trig menu, scroll to the function you want (inverse tangent is sixth on the list) then press enter, then type in the angle. On the TI-30XS you press sin/cos/tan, or for the inverse trig functions, 2nd and sin/cos/tan, just like on the TI-84. The natural log is also hidden like that.

In summary this TI-30XS has almost every feature of the TI-84 (except graphing) and is an incredible bargain.

My daughter's college chemistry class banned the graphing calculators (TI-83+) so students couldn't cheat. We had to purchase another calculator, however, and this one was perfect. My daughter learned to use it very quickly and loved it. Recommend.

After using CAS calculators for 10 years (hp48g,hp50g,ti92p), I couldn't use any scientific calculator, they were too simplistic (even if they had a lot of features) - UNTIL THIS CALCULATOR CAME ALONG. The calculation history is implemented just like on ti92plus. You need a number from the previous calculations? Just "up" to it, and paste it into your new calculation you're typing. And you can do this as many times as needed. Just grab the numbers from previous calculations and assemble new calculations. This works REALLY well for any involved problems (chemistry, physics, etc.)

Now here come the gripes. And they are BIG ONES!
The scientific notation is HORRIBLY implemented. Instead of "E" button to represent "x10^", it has an actual "x10^" button, which types "x10^" for you (you can do it without the button, by typing X 1 0 ^). So what's the problem?

Here's an example: what's 8Mega/3kilo?. On most scientific calculator this would look like this "8e6/3e3". On the ti30, however, this has to look like this "8x10^6/(3x10^3)". Maybe it's more proper, but it's a lot messier, and you also MUST use parenthesis for the denominator (in order to make sure that the exponents are kept in the denominator as well), or you can use fractions (which are just as many keystrokes). The only way to make sure that the exponent part stays with the value is to put parenthesis around each scientific value. What I end up doing when doing calculations with any scientific notation is putting parenthesis around EVERY number. It's dumb.

I'm not sure why TI did this. It looks much more cumbersome and much more difficult to interpret and review. "8e6/3e3" is right to the point, but TI engineers thought that "8x10^6/(3x10^3)" is much clearer.

I've stopped using it. I need scientific notation ALL THE TIME, and this calculator is just too cumbersome. It's too bad, because it's an awesome calculator otherwise... :/

To compare it to other calculators
I still like this calculator much more than the casio es115 or sharp w516. Unfortunately if you need the extra features; complex numbers is a BIG ONE, you're out of luck, this one doesn't do it. They're all great calculators though (that have more features, like numeric integration, instant differentials, matricies and imaginary - I argue against those features in scientific calculators, because they're so poorly implemented in comparison to how they're implemented on true CAS calculators like HP50g or tiVoyage). HP35 (hp33 is very similar) is a very specialized machine, I'd only recommend it to people that are used to HP machines, and need programming capability; to most other normal people it's as unintuitive as it gets (even RPN implementation is pretty strange in comparison to HP-28S,48,50 series).

UPDATE 6/12:
TI has released ti 36x pro, it fixes all of the forementioned problems. Yes, a normal "E" key (you can still type "x10^", if you are a masochist). complex numbers, solvers, num.calculus, constants library, conversions. It's a great calculator. Nobody should buy ti30xs. Look into 36x pro.