Finally got an HP 42S

[jracca]

(02-09-2015 04:04 PM)Gerald H Wrote:  Just to relativize the advances made since production of the 42S ceased, consider the time taken for this Task:

Factorize 765,927,960,121:

HP 42S: 364s ( 6m 04s ) SQFO
HP 42S: 149s ( 2m 29s ) FAST, SQFO
WP 34S:11s SQFO

using the same optimised form of Shanks' square form factorization.

The 42S is a great calculator, also an historical relic - the WP 34S current & cheaper.

I love my 34S, but for matrix functions, the 42s is vastly superior, the matrix editor and viewing is so much easier, I don't consider the 34s to even be competition, this is even more true if you need complex matrix functions. The only other calculators which are as easy to use matrix functions are the huge graphic calculators (the 50g shines in its ability to do symbolic matrix functions)

For just about everything else the 34s is vastly superior, especially the memory and I/O