<p>I'm thinking about concentrating in Applied Math or at least some concentration related to higher level math. I figure that a calculator is required (correct me if I'm wrong). Which type of calculator should I get? I'm currently using my high school's TI-83. Should I get a TI-84? Or should I go with TI-89? I know the community college near my high school doesn't allow students to use TI-89, but is it the same with Harvard? Or should I look at another brand altogether?
I want to get one before I leave the US for the entire summer.
Thanks in advance!</p>
<p>I got a 89 for my AP Calc class and it’s helped a lot. You might want to look into that (and get it whenever it’s on sale). There isn’t much of a difference between the 83 and 84.</p>
<p>Excel (or a comparable program) is the best and only calculator you will ever need.</p>
<p>TI-89 works well, and any math program that bans it has their priorities severely out of shape.</p>
<p>thing is with those ti-84/89 is that you can save messages in them…so most professors just go ahead and ban it as it serves no real advantage to a regular scientific in most cases…and almost all chem classes that i have seen ban it…as for my math classes such as calc3…linear algebra…no calcs at all allowed</p>
<p>personally for personal use …ie. homework and problem sets…ti-84/89 is more comfortable because of how all the numbers are entered (real small and you can keep entering and entering… press equals and then start a new problem under it without erasing the previous)…its practical</p>
<p>definitely wait to purchase, and find out if you actually have use for one vs. a four function calculator. from personal experience (anecdotal, very dependent on how the course/courses want to approach mathematics) a calculator is essentially a non factor after a second year of calculus. the best thing your calculator can do for you at higher levels of calculus is probably evaluate integrals (double,triple), but even then, that won’t be the gist of any question you will be asked. I think I could have used a four function calculator to complete the math courses I’ve taken over the past 5 years (algebra, geometry, pre calculus, calculus, multivariable/vector calculus, linear algebra, differential equations, topology, etc.). </p>
<p>However, I guess for homework it may save some time if you want to check a quick integral? It won’t do anything for you on exams.</p>