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HP Forum Archive 16

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Value of HP25?
Message #1 Posted by John Polhemus on 5 Feb 2007, 3:34 p.m.

Original owner of working HP25 calculator wants to know if there is a market for this piece of HP history. Also, have the original manual and AC power supply/battery charger. Thank you, JP

      
Re: Value of HP25?
Message #2 Posted by Dia C. Tran on 5 Feb 2007, 4:02 p.m.,
in response to message #1 by John Polhemus

Of course yes! So you want to sell it? Let us know. May be posting it in the classified section?

      
Re: Value of HP25?
Message #3 Posted by Hal Bitton on 6 Feb 2007, 2:33 a.m.,
in response to message #1 by John Polhemus

Hi John,
Your HP25 is certainly worth a respectable amount, especially if it still has the manuals and accessories. I would imagine such a set would easily bring $200+ on e-bay.
One caution I would pass on to you if I may, and if you are already aware of this please forgive me: If you use the calculator while the AC adapter is connected, and the battery pack loses contact, or even develops a bad contact, you can damage or ruin the calculator (the battery pack acts as the voltage regulator, and if it drops out of the circuit, overvoltage is applied to the calculator). It's best to charge your battery pack externally and not even connect the adapter to the calculator, but if you have no other way to charge it, I think you're safe if you don't turn the machine on while the adapter is connected. This wouldn't apply if it's a continous memory model, in which case the CMOS circuitry is always connected and remains vulnerable (any other posters please feel free to correct me if I'm wrong on this point).
Just a week or two ago I recall reading (with horror) an auction for an HP25 where the seller said the battery pack was missing and when he tried the machine with just the AC adapter, it displayed ramdom segments and was unresponsive...I wanted to yell "noooooo..." into my computer screen, as I mourned the death of yet another precious Woodstock machine.
Best regards, Hal

      
Re: Value of HP25?
Message #4 Posted by Thomas Okken on 6 Feb 2007, 3:56 p.m.,
in response to message #1 by John Polhemus

For what it's worth, I bought an HP-25 a year or two ago on eBay, for $33. What kept the price low in that case was the absence of everything except the calculator itself and the battery, and I also managed to snipe the auction with seconds to spare. The calculator proved to be in excellent condition, as claimed by the seller.
I would have been willing to pay more, probably up to $100, because of the nostalgia value (my first HP calculator was an HP-25). Other people suffering from similar nostalgia may be willing to pay as much, and more if it comes with box, manuals, carrying case, and charger.

- Thomas

Edited: 6 Feb 2007, 3:58 p.m.


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