Re: Collectors: HP Only ? Message #4 Posted by Steve Borowsky on 14 Oct 2002, 10:47 p.m., in response to message #1 by John Smith
<<I'm curious to know: do you people in this forum who are collectors collect just HP machines ? Or are there other brands or models which you also collect and appreciate ? If yes, which ones the most and why ? I believe TI is mostly despised among hardcore HP fans like myself, but, what about other brands ? Is HP alone on its throne ?>>
I don't collect just HP's, not even just calculators, but HP's are a central part of my collection. For some reason I like early, portable, microchip technology. In addtion to those qualifiers, anything that is innovative, well-designed, fits its intended purpose well. There's something else, an element of effort that comes through in a design. There was an attempt to carry the technology as far as it would go, you could see that the people cared about what they were doing, made right decisions. It's a 'magical' combination that stands out through time, even though the technology is obsolete. In fact that obsolescence makes it stand out even more. I don't despise TI's. I don't despise anything. It's not like that. It's more like certain things stand out against a neutral background.
<<Also, would you say that HP models are definitely well above every other brands in quality and performance, or perhaps the issue isn't quite so clear, and might even be the other way around ? Is HP past fame the result of really superior products, or is it more a matter of blind faith in the superiority of its machines, a kind of chauvinism, not really justified by hard facts ?>>
HP seems to have taken the technology most seriously, and took it further than anyone else. TI was closest with the 59, and even surpassed HP in many respects with that model, but they didn't follow up. HP was pretty consistent for two decades with excellent designs.
<<Finally, HP machines tend to raise to stratospheric prices in eBay, supposedly reflecting their superior quality and/or rarity and/or desirability. That's a fact. The question is, are there any other brands which also get such extremely high prices as well ? Which ones ? Do they deserve it or is it just another inflationary bubble ?>>
There are few as high as HP right now, but that could change. Compucorp can get as high as some HP's. Some Sinclair models. Even some Casio and Sharp handheld computers. Inflationary bubbles on ebay are not impenetrable though. Someone could get a 15C for $23 with 'buy-it-now' even while the bubble is at $200. Whether or not something deserves the price is subjective, but it can be argued that if it got that price it deserved it, barring any kind of fraud. ebay is a wonderful resource. You could spend decades looking for something you may find on ebay in weeks or months. You may have to pay for it but hey. It's far easier to be ready to pounce on a good deal on ebay than it is to spend years searching in vain until you find it in a flea market in a town where your car happens to brake down.
|