<p>I'm taking it next Saturday, and I currently use my old scientific calculator. However, I've noticed a lot of the questions in the Barron's book seem to require a graphing calculator.</p>
<p>If I am getting one, what is the best/cheapest make?</p>
<p>Thanks ^^.</p>
<p>I’m hoping I don’t need a graphing calc. I’m very familiar with my scientific one, and while a graphing calculator is helpful in some cases, I think I’ll be able to manage without it.</p>
<p>I used my graphing calculator a lot, and certainly found it very useful on some problems. I had a casio fx9750g, and it’s a very good calc but I’d recommend getting a TI 83 since it’s the calc used in Barron’s calc usage section.</p>
<p>A graphing calculator can help you find the decimal solutions to polynomial equations so I would try and get one and practice using that function. Plus it can also provide a good route to getting the right answer if you’re stuck.</p>
<p>You can Ti-89 your ass off. :)</p>
<p>Um, this is a drastic deviation from most opinions on this thread, but I think a scientific calculator should do just fine. I’m going to be using one, anyway. If you know the logic/rules/rationale behind graphs, you should be able to crack the questions. If not, plot a few points and make a rough sketch. Use hints like symmetry along y=x for inverse of a function and so forth. Most people I know have gotten 800s without a graphing calc at all. Of course, I do come from India…that might be a point there, we’ve never seen even a scientific calculator all our school careers.</p>
<p>I agree with the above post. I took my Maths test recently and didn’t need a graphing calculator. But then again, I didn’t require a graphing calculator for the barrons’ tests either.</p>
<p>Need?..no…</p>
<p>Supremely recommended? yes</p>
<p>It helps with solving a lot of trig questions…such as intersections and such</p>
<p>Assuming you can figure out how to utilize a graphing calculator to your benefit in the time you have left…</p>
<p>whats the harm in using one? it can only help you - unless you haven’t used one before, but thats a different story.</p>
<p>If you aren’t an Indian get one. lol</p>
<p>Agree with supercool that graphic calculator is just useful for polynomial equations, but actually you can still do it with little knowlegde about limits blah blah. I took Math 2 with scientific calculator and got 800.</p>
<p>Just to update my experience with calcs,
I had to use a graphing calc a LOT on the October test, however, after zero prep, I didn’t find myself needing to use the calc on December test at all. Tis strange.</p>
<p>No, a calculator is not necessary for any of the problems. The seemingly irrational numbers are all familiar ones like sqrt(2) and sqrt(3) and all can be expressed in simple fractions.</p>
<p>Unless u are super strong at math, i would very highly recommend a graphing calculator
questions about zeros especially and -ve / +ve regions can be done a lot quicker with a graphing calculator. </p>
<p>If ur somehow awesome at visualising what a graph looks like / calculating zeros then i think ud be ok with a scientific one</p>