<p>Anyone have a TI nspire? I just recently heard about it and it's cheaper than the TI-89 and supposedly, it's even cooler and does more stuff.
Also, the screen and the way things are arranged and displayed are better?</p>
<p>I need a calculator for Calc AB..and I plan on taking Calc BC..and probably a bit more math in college..so I'm thinking it's worth it to invest in another calculator (have a TI-84 right now) since I'll be using if for quite awhile.</p>
<p>Are TI-nspires like the new calculator to use?? Will TI-89s be really old and less common in the future or should I still get a TI-89 because that's what everyone else seems to have? </p>
<p>The new features (like the way you enter integrals and the way it's displayed) is really neat, very organized and it IS cheaper..</p>
<p>The nspire is more pre-calc / lower level calc oriented, whereas the 89 is good for higher level / engineering calc. If you want to graph in 3 dimensions, buy the 89. If you want to make integral calculus easier, buy the nspire.</p>
<p>There's a small Ti-89 vs. Ti-nspire section there.</p>
<p>I suggest you just use a scientific calculator for high school calc. If you can't differentiate without the aid of a calculator, then you shouldn't be taking that class.</p>
<p>Well, I can differentiate and all without a calculator but it's much more time efficient to use a calc on the calculator portion of the AP exam because it saves so much time..
Plus, almost everyone in my class already has one and I feel like I can do better on tests and on the AP exam using it.</p>
<p>Yeah...it's quite expensive for a calculator especially if I already have one but getting a better grade on the AP exam is pretty worth it?</p>
Yeah...it's quite expensive for a calculator especially if I already have one but getting a better grade on the AP exam is pretty worth it?
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<p>That assumes that a minor upgrade in calculator will get you a better grade. I got a 5 on Calc BC with a TI-84, and I finished the calculator portion with plenty of time to spare. A TI-89 isn't going to get you a different answer from a TI-84, and it's usually not going to be faster either (it's actually often slower).</p>
<p>Is your TI-Nspire a TI-Nspire CAS? Because if not, it is more analogous to the TI-84 than the TI-89. You are allowed 2 calculators on the ap exam; I believe the usual strategy is to have both a symbolic calculator for tougher problems and a non-symbolic one for quicker problems (time is a factor on the exam, after all). If a problem takes a while to be solved or graphed you can also use the other calculator. So yeah, if you don't have the TI-Nspire with CAS, buy an 89 or a TI-Nspire with CAS. If you do, combined with your 84 you have nothing to worry about.</p>
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Well, I can differentiate and all without a calculator but it's much more time efficient to use a calc on the calculator portion of the AP exam because it saves so much time..
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As I recall, the calculator portion of the exam included some integrals that we were never taught how to do by hand and which would have likely taken hours to calculate to the required level of accuracy even if we knew the right approximation methods, so yeah... a calculator is essential.</p>
<p>The main advantage of symbolic calculators are the ability to give you symbolic answers (they will do long division for you, and you can ask them to take a derivative or an integral and they will give you the expression instead of just being able to ask them for an approximation at a certain point or for a certain definite range).</p>
<p>That being said, the TI-89 Titanium is God's gift students of the quantitative disciplines (mathematics, physics, statistics, and engineering).</p>
<p>Unless he means this ancient thing, I would think he means an 84: TI</a> 94/A</p>
<p>TI-nspire is very classroom-oriented, aimed towards making math easier to understand and more "friendly." It's definitely not suited to those who want to get the most out of their calculator, and definitely not for hardcore calc/upper-level math.</p>
<p>TI-89/Titanium is definitely the best "legit" calculator in the field right now. It is basically a non-QWERTY version of the TI-92/Voyage 200 calculator, meaning it carries some of the best features while still allowed on AP/SAT ;D</p>
<p>The Titanium will take you far, especially if you plan to go into engineering/upper-level math. I'd rather make the investment now instead of buying later, but for Calc AB an 84 is still fine.</p>
<p>My school provided 83's, but most of my friends used 84's. Most of my teachers with the exception of one let me use my 89-T, though.</p>
<p>The nspire cas is sexy. It is huge, but sexy.
I won it in some random competition, and it has now replaced my 89.</p>
<p>All the features of the 89 (including 3d graphing!), but far, far more user-friendly. This thing is a mini-computer--spreadsheets, neat graphs, pretty print, and all. It arranges things into documents->problems->tabs. I normally keep a separate document for every class, so all my constants, formulas, and functions are pre-loaded, without the chance of confusion. (I=moment of inertia vs weight of iodine) I found it easier to program on the nspire than the 89.</p>
<p>I can't emphasize how nice the pretty print is. Besides, it completes parentheses (something i found the 89 to be severely lacking) and it takes tests for you.
The nspire makes entry much easier, since it has separate letter keys (variable <3).</p>
<p>I disagree with vivi's verdict, if not apparent already. I've found that the nspire handles symbolic integration/differentiation, graphing, lists (spreadsheets on the nspire) just as effectively, if not better. Again, easier access to variables makes the nspire better for hardcore math. I don't have to F1-something alpha-something (or var) every time I want to crossp(v1,v2).</p>
<p>I've used this thing for some vector manipulation (problem sets at SSP) and several math and physics classes. Definitely works for more advanced math/science.</p>
<p>hmm. downsides: if you pull out the batteries, it does a little "loading operating system." it also seemed to instill the love of parentheses in me (I'm blaming this on my calculator, not my personality/writing style.) the letter keys are positioned between the number keys, so it's sometimes easy to mash a couple of letters into your calculations if you're not careful.</p>
<p>@eternallysleepy: the 89 has pretty print as well.</p>
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My school provided 83's, but most of my friends used 84's. Most of my teachers with the exception of one let me use my 89-T, though.
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My school provided us 83's for precalc, but gave us both 84 Pluses and 89's for Calc AB (they were intended to be used in the manner I described in my first post; the 89 for tougher problems requiring it's abilities and the 84 for faster ones, with either calculator ready to take over if the other one was taking too long doing something).</p>
<p>I remember I carried the 84 and 89 in my jacket every day until the day I gave them back. Good times... the teacher warned us not to leave them alone because that was the only way we were going to lose them, and added that they would join "the colony." When further inquired about that, she replied that students kept saying they left their calculator on their desks for a while and when they returned they weren't there anymore, so she said the only explanation was that they were growing feet and joining the colony of them over by the butterfly garden.</p>
<p>Dammit, I miss my teacher... best math teacher I had in high school, and still ties for the spot of best math teacher I've ever had (the other teacher being my Calc II teacher in college).</p>