The Museum of HP Calculators

HP Forum Archive 13

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HP-45 VS HP-67
Message #1 Posted by Frederic on 4 June 2003, 9:21 p.m.

Hi, i'm not a collector but like led calculators and i'm looking for a HP-65 OR a HP-67 on eBay. I know the HP-67 is newer and more powerful than the HP-65 and were two popular selling market. So when looking at prices on eBay, i saw that the 65 fetch about 50% more than the 67 for the same condition. Today a 65 fetch twice a 67 for same condition! Why? They look like the same quality no? Appart that the 65 is the first programmable on the market, what is driven the price up of the 65?

thans you for answering my newbies question on this Forum

Fred from Canada

      
Re: HP-45 VS HP-67
Message #2 Posted by Ernie Malaga on 4 June 2003, 11:04 p.m.,
in response to message #1 by Frederic

Quote:
Appart that the 65 is the first programmable on the market, what is driven the price up of the 65?

That's your answer, Fred. The HP-65 is one of the Great Originals in the HP calculator line, while the HP-67 (while more powerful, versatile, etc.) is just a sequel.

Of course, we're talking about sensible people here. Ebay, however, is an entirely different matter. Just about any crazy price you care to imagine has been asked for just about any piece of trash -- and what depresses me -- there's always someone who pays for it.

"There's a sucker born every minute," some cynic once said. I wish I could remember who it was: he was right on the button.

-Ernie

            
Re: HP-65 VS HP-67
Message #3 Posted by Michael F. Coyle on 5 June 2003, 1:37 a.m.,
in response to message #2 by Ernie Malaga

Quote:
"There's a sucker born every minute," some cynic once said. I wish I could remember who it was: he was right on the button.

P.T. Barnum, American showman, 1810-1891, a master at separating suckers and their money.

- Michael

                  
Re: HP-65 VS HP-67
Message #4 Posted by Ernie Malaga on 5 June 2003, 3:52 a.m.,
in response to message #3 by Michael F. Coyle

Thank you!

-Ernie

            
Re: HP-(6?)5 VS HP-67
Message #5 Posted by db(martinez,california) on 5 June 2003, 1:43 a.m.,
in response to message #2 by Ernie Malaga

my guess is that there were more 67's sold. it was in production longer and was cheaper too. it is also possible for a 65 to be almost ten years older than a 67, so the 65 had a lot more time to be thrown away or run over or whatever. being more rare can't hurt the price of the 65.

me, i have fond memories of my favorite boss, good old john lopez, banging out the horizontals on his 67 and copying them by hand onto my 41/thinkjet printout of the elevations. we really felt hi-tek, well hood of the truck hi tek anyway. and back then we were.

i never even held a 65 till i found one at the sal (the writer grins luridly) for three bucks.

                  
Re: HP-(6?)5 VS HP-67
Message #6 Posted by Ernie Malaga on 5 June 2003, 3:56 a.m.,
in response to message #5 by db(martinez,california)

My only contact with an HP-65 was in college. A friend of mine borrowed one from one of his friends, and I got to teach him how to program the machine. My previous experience with HP calculators was with an HP-25 only, but I had read plenty about the 65.

That machine was already old, and the card reader made the whole calculator vibrate when engaged -- but it still worked. This was 1977, so the 65 couldn't have been more than 5 years old, right?

Shortly afterward I sold my 25 and bought a 67, brand new, which sounded like a baby rattle whenever I shook it. But hey -- at least the card reader was healthier! 8^)

-Ernie

      
Re: HP-65 VS HP-67
Message #7 Posted by David Ramsey on 5 June 2003, 11:47 a.m.,
in response to message #1 by Frederic

As others have noted, the 65 was the first handheld programmable calculator, and thus is more interesting to a collector.

But you said you're not a collector, which implies you might actually want to USE the calculator. The 67 is much more powerful than the 65 and is definitely the one to get in that case.

Be aware that in either case you should check to make sure the card reader functions. The rubber roller that pulls the cards through the reader disintegrates in about 20 years and virtually all of the old card reader calcs you see will have this problem. It's repairable, though.


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