Texas Instruments 89 Titanium Business/Scientific Calculator

Strengths: AP Calculus, AP Physics, and Engineering Capabilities.

Weaknesses: Software (TI-Connect) to put programs on the calculator could be easier to use for those not computer oriented.

Summary: For a few years, I had the TI-86, and for graphing purposes and playing games of course, this was all that I needed to do. But when I went into Calculus, graphing alone was not enough. The TI-89 Titanium performs integrals and derivatives, and with Calculus Tool (program that you can download from the TI website) you can even do implicit differentiation. Also, with another download it is possible to do volumes by disks and washers.

Now that we have put some very helpful calculus function behind, it is a very helpful physics and engineering tool. From 34 physics (including circuits) constants (from -1.602 X 10 to the 23 to Avogadro's Number) to graphing analysis of buildings for civil engineers, this calculator can do it all.

The interface of the calculator is the best. I was continually clinging onto the TI-86 through the calculus year until finally me friends convinced me otherwise right before the exam. But even more convincing was just how the calculator worked. Instead of getting a large decimal for the cos of Pi/2, you get real answers like (radical 2) /2. (The format looks like it would in a math text book.) Also amazing about it is the simplicity to use it. The manual is a little less than 300 pages, but the calculator does so many functions that if you are looking for specific functions, then you can simply skip many sections that may not be of use to you (after all, we are all not nuclear physicists!).

One difference between the TI-89 and TI-89 Titanium is memory. The Titanium holds upwards of 500KB of ram, as the TI site says, which is much more than just the 89. This way, you can download a lot more physics, math, and game programs in case you ever get bored in History 101 (for the most games, go to ticalc.org). And this brings us to the transfer ability. The Titanium, unlike the regular 89, has a USB port for connectivity, so you do not have to use those old serial ports anymore. The calculator comes with the USB cable for connecting it to your computer along with a USB unit-to-unit USB cable link directly to other Titaniums. Concerning the transfer process from computer to Calculator, the software (it comes with it) is easy to setup, but can be difficult to use if you do not know whether to archive the file to you r calculator or send it as ram. But even before that, sometimes the program fails to communicate with the calculator so you may have to unplug it and plug it in again before it will work completely. But again, if you can find someone that already has all of the programs, you can just use the unit-to-unit cable and get the programs from them.

Therefore, if you are looking for the integral of the ln (2x) + e to the 2x +25x or just plain multiplication, the TI-89 Titanium can do it all quickly ans easily, providing non decimal answers unless you want it to (love that feature). With the TI-89 Titanium you are control!

I bought the TI-89 Titanium Scientific Calculator, as we have used TI calculators before, namely TI-84 Silver Edition Scientific Calculator and TI-35X Scientific Calculator. We still use them, are dependable and are very satisfied with their performance. This TI-89 was bought on my son's AP Calculus teacher's recommendation. There is really nothing negative that I can think of mentioning about TI calculators. It has certainly been a smart decision to buy another Texas Instrument calculator and would recommend it to anyone without a doubt.

Ti-89 Titanium surpasses their other handheld graphing calculators.
The "edge" with this calculator is that you can update it! through the TI's website the calculator can be updated, programs, etc.

With all of these, take a few hours to get to know how to use the calculator... Don't just buy right before your test without prior knowledge assuming it's the same as a TI-83/84, because it's not... you'll find out when you turn it on.

This calculator rocks bar none. It has all the features of the TI-84 although the layout is not as straight forward as the TI-84 (you might actually have to crack open the manual to figure out how to use it properly), but it makes up for it by offering almost DOUBLE the Memory and some very useful Apps. This is strictly a college level calculator (most specifically for engineering) with tons of useful Engineering oriented applications. It can also perform advanced calculus operations with a few keystrokes. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED for Engineering & Science Majors. if your still in high school (or non-engineering/science major in college) I would recommend getting a TI-84 Plus Silver Edition instead since it is more high school oriented than the TI-89 Titanium (which doesn't have as many cool GAMES and personalization options available). Bottom line is the TI-89 Titanium is a more grown-up version of the TI-84 Plus Silver Edition, that leaves behind some of it's High School attributes in favor of more college/professional applications. As an engineering student I highly recommend it to both students and professionals alike. If you are shopping for a college level calculator with everything you could possibly need, look no further.

My 16 year old son is a high school junior and taking advanced placement classes this year. He needed the Texas Instruments TI-89 Titanium Scientific Calculator for his classes. We are on a tight budget so I suggested he go to E-bay to save some money. After some research he decided on this product. When it came in the mail, he said, "If this calculator was a girl, I would marry it!" He said it does so many calculations that he needs and some that are just fun.