HP Forum Archive 15

[ Return to Index | Top of Index ]

33s serial no production dates Message #1 Posted by david bowers on 30 Aug 2005, 8:17 a.m. hi my cousin in hatboro pa couldnt make sense of the manufature date on hp33s i called walmart from taiwan, the guy said it had hp 2003 on the packet . he said he couldnt find the 05 numbers to signify the 2005 year it was made, so i could get the pixel fix model. can someone enlighten me on what to look for, is the no. on the calculator or the packaging, can it be read easily or do you have to open up the blister pack or box to investigate and confirm cheers david

Re: 33s serial no production dates Message #2 Posted by bill platt on 30 Aug 2005, 8:59 a.m., in response to message #1 by david bowers You can turn the machine on through the blister pack--you just have to push hard through the plastic packaging.

Re: 33s serial no production dates Message #3 Posted by david bowers on 30 Aug 2005, 9:04 a.m., in response to message #2 by bill platt my cousins not so inlcined to tell the good from the bad, somebody had mentioned the year of ma. date on the pack thanks david

Re: 33s serial no production dates Message #4 Posted by Ron Ross on 30 Aug 2005, 9:31 a.m., in response to message #3 by david bowers I have an earlier model and while the decimal is not great, with the FIX function, the sorry Deciamal point does show and it is a usable calculator. I don't consider it on par to an older Hp 32sii for quality, but it is close. My biggest gripe is that it is a FAT Glittery eye magnet, and not a true pocket calculator. It is much smaller than a graphics, but is still to big to fit in most shirt pockets. It is wider than the Hp32sii and I feel even the Hp32sii series was a bit too tall. I liked the size of the older Hp11c line best. But hey, its a $50 RPN calculator that is the best available. That it isn't the size of the Casio FX250/260 or Hp6s line is too bad, but I am glad it is available. I used mine extensively for 2 months (needed for an exam) and don't mind using it further, but I like the features of the Hp48/49G series on my desk. If I did field work, I would grab the Hp33s in a heartbeat (it is my least valuable Hp RPN calculator).

tests Message #5 Posted by bill platt on 30 Aug 2005, 1:48 p.m., in response to message #4 by Ron Ross Hi Ron, So you passed your test? :-) Do you have an original Walmart release, or the 1st batch that came out after the hiatus just before full release? I have a 1st Walmart and it has the "swap" in Algebraic which switches the order of the x and y registers. Do you have the newer "parallel algebraic stack" version? The newest one I checked, with big decimals, also has the parallel algebraic stack. Regards, Bill My email is still the same.

Re: tests Message #6 Posted by Ron Ross on 30 Aug 2005, 2:33 p.m., in response to message #5 by bill platt Why, thanks for asking, and YES, I did!!! I did have a difficult time just getting to take the exam. It seems they held a low regard for my BA degree and wanted to see an ABET accredited degree. I had to provide an extensive amount of references and work experience. It was a proverbial mountain to climb for me just to take the exam. After all that baloney, I certainly couldn't afford to fail (they would then get a second chance to change their minds).

Re: tests Message #7 Posted by Ron Ross on 30 Aug 2005, 2:44 p.m., in response to message #5 by bill platt I bought my 33s from Erik at Hpcalc.org back in January of 05. It has the small decimal place and I only used it in RPN mode. Never bothered to check the algebraic mode to any great extent. Now that I passed my exam, I tossed the Hp33s into the back of a drawer and use other Hp's for day to day use. If I still did field service, it would be a main calculator, for sure!

Re: 33s serial no production dates Message #8 Posted by bill platt on 30 Aug 2005, 1:44 p.m., in response to message #3 by david bowers Hi David, Are you in Taiwan? Your cousin is in hatboro? You need hjim to buy it for you and send it? You cannot buy in Taiwan? What is the situation? (Maybe we can help).

Re: 33s serial no production dates Message #9 Posted by david bowers on 30 Aug 2005, 5:53 p.m., in response to message #8 by bill platt hi yes, my cousin is an accountant, hmmm, anyway as i lost the 11c last week, i will want to use the 33 in the field, i have a 48gx with cogo, 2x 32s2 and 2x 48g,and the 42s but on construction sites i crawl in and out of holes,up steel beams and cover so much ground, if i put it down i forget where, my rodman tires at times of finding my stuff, and its always half dark inside these places so i would find the smaller decimal point a bother as i do onsite calcs, i have since bought a better pouch as i have a feeling the 11c flipped out when i was walking. yes i would appreciate any help locating maybe 2 of the new ones. i dont want to shell out a few hundred for another 11c, its the second time i have lost a calc in 30 years, the other 42s i have, i had returned after it fell 10 metres and a chinese guy picked it up after i posted a 50usd reward, both on this construction site in taiwan thanks david

Re: 33s serial no production dates Message #10 Posted by brian b on 2 Sept 2005, 8:24 a.m., in response to message #9 by david bowers has HP fixed the display so that you can distinguish the decimal point from the 2, and have they done something to improve the shadows in the lcd display? My 33s has a serial number of 44204310, and it is very difficult to distinguish the decimal point when it is next to the number 2. Fixing the display would go a long way to improving this calculator, but in terms of user interface I still won't consider it on par with the 32SII. I really don't like the small ENTER key or its location.

[ Return to Index | Top of Index ]

Go back to the main exhibit hall