HP 48SX Demonstration Card

[Chris Dreher]

EduCALC's price was $8.95 while saying that HP's list price was $15, likely to generate interest in getting a deal. I suppose obsolescence was a factor. EduCALC wasn't selling the GX in Fall 1992 in issue #57 but they likely knew the GX was coming (HP certainly knew the GX was coming). EduCALC was selling GX by Fall 1993 in issue #61 and very likely before that. The Demo card is not even listed in the Fall 1993 issue.

I just like that the $15 list price from HP gives us a rough idea of what manufacturing costs for the cards was at. Of course, other costs and profits go into the final price for a typical card.

My first HP was the 48SX. I was unknowingly on the very tail end of the SX reign. If I'd known the GX was coming, I would have waited a couple more months. Information just wasn't as readily available back in those days. When I later learned about the GX, I considered upgrading. However, my SX already had a 128KB RAM and the HP Solve Equation library card. The GX was definitely better than what I already owned but not $275 better.

The 48SX is the calculator I use today. Since college, I have not had a need to upgrade and the one I own still works. It has lasted longer than my spouses.

That said, I agree that main people using the 48-series are people who used it back in the day. Someone new to the calculator scene would prefer a 50G or the Prime.