Yes, calculators are made from plastic ^^

[Thomas Radtke]

(02-23-2014 12:23 AM)jebem Wrote:  I have here a Casio Algebra FX 2.0 Plus and it says "Made in China" as well.
So Casio Japan doesn't make calculators anymore, they do the same as HP, just sub-contract one expert elsewhere to do the job.

I think it makes a difference to what degree a particular calculator design has been outsourced. Especially the firmware should be done by the company selling the calculator (like in the Prime, unlike in the 35s), else one could quickly come to a point where the basic stuff is more or less the same in all products, including bugs. In the extreme, the manufacturer can only be told by the label on the package (e.g. HP-30S).

There's one interesting observation: Kinpo calculators work like early Casio calculators in terms of user interface and labelling. They also produce (musical) keyboards for Casio and probably other devices, too. Do Kinpo belong to the Casio group of companies? I'd really like to know more about this topic.

Edit: Ha, there's the Google translator! According to the history page of Kinpo (http://www.kinpo.com.tw/English/about_history.html), their calculators are made since 1996.