Texas Instruments TI-36X Pro Engineering/Scientific Calculator | 9.7 Inch | Black.

Satisfactory

Im a university junior computer science major. My workload is extremely math heavy. Almost four years ago when I started at community college, I knew nothing about advanced math, or calculators. I bought the cheapest calculator at Walmart which indicated that it was allowed for use on college tests, (SAT, ACT, etc.). I believe it was the Casio fx-115ES PLUS. Not a bad calculator, and comparable to this one, but it has many shortcomings IMO. A year or so later, by the time I started taking calculus classes I bought a graphing calculator, (ti-nSpire). I really enjoy that calculator too. I was turned onto the ti-36x pro by a professor I had a couple years ago. Since it basically fills the same niche has the Casio that I already have I never saw any reason to buy it. Besides, for the past few years Ive mostly relied on the nSpire. This Fall I began taking physics classes for some of my major requirements. The teacher doesnt allow the nSpire, or any CAS calculator on the tests. I like to use the same calculator in the coursework/homework that Ill be using on future tests, just to have that muscle memory when its showtime. I pulled out the old Casio and dusted it off, and after the past few years with the ti-nSpire, lets just say I was less than inspired by using the Casio. The biggest thing that I dislike about the Casio is that you can only see the present problem that youre working on at any given time. I got used to being able to scroll up and see previous problems/solutions, and being able to navigate the cursor up to a previous solution, press enter, and have it inserted into another equation, or whatever that Im currently working on. Hopefully that makes sense. In any event, the ti-36x pro does this too! You can see the three most recent problems that you last worked on, in addition to the one youre currently working on. And you can scroll back to any spot in the history, up until the point where you last cleared it. You can also easily insert solutions, or portions of previous problems into the current. For me this is crucial during test taking. It is the best type of calculator work flow for myself, and although something similar to this can be achieved with the Casio, I was never able to get it to work with out feeling cumbersome. There are several other things that I like about this calculator over the Casio as well. In some aspects I like it even more than the ti-nSpire. Mostly just because using this calculator is so smooth and simple. If I dont need to take limits, anti-derivatives, or indefinite integrals, or plot actual graphs, I would choose the ti 36x pro over the nSpire, just because it is so simple and elegant to use. Ive not used a ti-84 much. Never owned one, but have played with them a few times. As far as I can tell, this thing is basically a ti-84, without graphing capabilities. In short, if you need a calculator for algebra, engineering, physics, trig, some calculus, etc., but you cant use a full fledged CAS, or even a regular graphing calculator, this is the best option.

I had used a TI-83+ for about 8 years. When I signed up to take my Fundamentals of Engineering review, they limit which calculators can be used and the one I was used to wasnt allowed. However, this one was. I had such an easy transition to using this one and it saved me on multiple occasions during the exam (especially the definite integral and matrices features).

For this review, Im going to be comparing the TI-36X Pro (from here on shortened to TI for the sake of brevity) and the Casio fx-115 ES (shorted to Casio). Both calculators are excellent, but whether or not the TIs shortcomings make up for the Casios features is up for debate. ------------------------------ What I like about the TI The buttons. Theyre far more clicky on the TI then on the Casio. Dont get me wrong, the Casios button are still pretty good, but theyre inferior to the TIs buttons. Calculation history. When you turn off the TI, all of the calculations youve done are saved inside the calculators memory. For example, you enter 2+2 and press enter. You then turn off the calculator. When you turn the calculator back on, you can scroll up and find that calculation saved, results and all. Add in the fact that this calculator even saves calculations that results in errors, and this calculator could be a potentially useful way to cheat on tests. Take the quadratic formula as a example, you can type it into the calculator a couple minutes before you take a test over it and pull it up right when your proctor walks away. Once you have it written down on your test, you can just clear the TIs memory and itll then be impossible to prove youre cheating. Im not saying you should do this, Im just saying you could do this. The Casio instantly erases your history the second you turn it off. It also does not save any calculations that results in a error. The anti-slip pads on the back. I have no idea what those little pads are called, but thats what Ill call them. Basically, there are four little pads on the back of the TI which creates friction and makes it almost impossible for the TI to slide on slick surfaces. The Casios plastic casing wouldve instantly slipped from the surface of a slick, angled surface. (It doesnt necessarily have to be a slick surface, just any surface that doesnt create friction, such as a wooden surface thats been waxed) ------------------------------- What I dont like about the TI The third button. On this calculator, Texas Instruments (the manufacturer of the TI) decided to put in a peculiar take on multi-purpose buttons. For example, there is one key on this calculator that, with one tap, inserts x, two taps inserts y, and so on. (x, y, z, t, a, b, c, d) There is also a 2nd button that, if clicked in conjunction with the previously mentioned button, brings up the clear var dialog. Because of that, a single button on this calculator could potentially do eight different functions. The Casio only has 1st, 2nd, and 3rd buttons. The maximum number of functions a button on the Casio could do is three. The way Texas Instruments decided to implement mixed fractions. I dont really want to get all technical, and someone else can probably explain the problem far better then I could. Just do a Google search for Supposed TI-36X Pro Error. (Include the parenthesis. Yes, you heard that right, include the parenthesis.) In practice, I dont find that bug to be very bothersome. I rarely use mixed fractions. The Casio doesnt exhibit this problem. ------------------------------ Overall, you cant go wrong with either calculators. Its just a matter of whether or not youre willing to accept the TIs faults in exchange for its features. The price difference is negligible, at least at the time of writing. The TI was more expensive by about $5.

I am a fan of this calculator, it is an updated version of the one I used through high school and part of college. I got this for my son for high school, it took a little bit to teach his some of the functions, but it made a real difference once he got the hang of it. It is something that is worth every penny.

I am used to TI format, so this is just right for me. I am a chemical engineer student (sophomore at the time of this review), but I bought this in high school. This suited me for most of my needs in high school. Fine for geometry stuff and can actually solve cubic and quadratic functions for x. Doing calculus on this using integrals and differentiating was slightly time consuming, so if time is a factor for that look for graphing calculators. For stats, I got through perhaps half of the class/functions necessary with this calculator. This doesnt graph but can generate data tables. Now for college uses. I attend UT, and calculators are usually not allowed. The ones that are (at least for the classes I take like chemistry, maybe biology, intro engineering courses, physics I think) dont allow graphing calculators. Thats where this thing shines. It can store data in several variables for easy access, scroll to previous calculations, solve quadratics and cubics, convert fractions/decimals, aaaaaaand access preloaded scientific constants like planks constant or avagadros number. The interface is well designed, and do not underestimate the ability of that fraction button that allows you to type a numerator and denominator for fractions within fractions. I have had this for over three years, and have never had a problem with it, or needed to change the battery. I would recommend this to anyone who needs a scientific calculator. TI 84 or 83 a thing of the past in college. If you need a graphing calculator, id say learn to use TI 89 in college (Might be banned in high school).

Originally bought a TI-89 Titanium and a TI-nspire CX 2 (Both with CAS) for school. Although it did everything and looked spiffy, 75%-90% of my classes didnt allow us to use it (apparently the CAS and other features do everything for you, who knew?). Once into my sophomore year (this year), something called COVID has placed most classes online making difficult to exclude those spiffy calculators. Any way we were told even though we may WANT to use the nspires and 89s, we need to get used to the calculators allowed on the FE exam. Enter the TI-36X Pro. This thing does just about every thing the spiffy ones can do, but still looks like those old solar powered ones you used to punch 58008 and tell someone to read upside down. Except this little bastard is powerful! Integrals, derivatives, vectors (dot and cross function in the vector menu, no need to write up a matrix and remember that ridiculous formula), solver, system solver for multi variables. This thing can do some serious damage even on a calc 3 exam, and its solar powered so you dont need to remember to charge it or bring spare batteries. Obviously the other beast calcs can graph and this cant. Other than that this thing is incredible for its price!!!! The only downside I would say is that it looks intimidating to use, and has a SLIGHT learning curve to it. BUT if you are going into a Science field and cant learn to use this, then you need to change your major ASAP!!! HIGHLY recommend getting this calculator for any college freshmen that will be majoring in Engineering, perfect for the student budget, and still can whoop some ass.

I should have purchased this calculator first, but I thought I could buy one of the cheaper ones available. This TI is made to the high quality. I’ve always come to expect from Texas instruments. The cheaper calculator I had purchased prior was difficult to read. The decimal point looked like a comma and the comma look like a decimal point. It was often difficult to figure out what the number was. I am very happy with the functions available on this calculator and the two lines read out. I would buy it again it’s worth a few dollars more.

This calculator was an upgrade from my son’s middle school one (TI-30xiis). I was looking for something that would carry him into advanced math and even college maths, without being a full-functioning expensive graphing calculator. So far, straight out of the package, I can already see that it was a good choice to upgrade. It has more functions, a user guide cheat sheet in the lid, rubberized grips both on the calculator and lid, a larger display screen, and more. The function buttons are NOT metallic as shown and mentioned in older reviews. See pics.

I read the reviews before purchasing this calculator. This thing is gorgeous. Built to last and the feel of the keys is very durable. Love the way the cover clips on and completely protects the calculator. The back side of the calculator has 4 inlaid rubber feet that will stay on forever. If you want to take the lid off and clip it onto the back, it also has the 4 rubber feet. This calculator looks handsome and not faddish. Easy to see the characters on the keys and easy to read on the display. If you are concerned about your child (or whoever) being rough on stuff, this is an excellent choice. Has tons of great reviews. It is more expensive but not that much more expensive. If you are one who is always misplacing or losing stuff then get a less expensive one. If you are concerned about long lasting durability, then get this one. It seems to be very statistics oriented according to my math tutor today. He has a Casio FX 260 solar and says it got him through all of his engineering courses. I also have a Casio FX 260 and my adult GED classes were supplied with this GED calculator. It is the official one used on the GED exam. My math tutor told me that I dont need one this advanced to get through Trig and Calc. but I love this TI-36XPro calculator and plan to learn how to use it. Comes with a nice little instruction manual, not like those stupid fold out sheets. Others reviews have commented on its use. I am emphasizing its appearance, build quality , design,and instruction manual. One person commented on the silver keys on the right being difficult to read, but it is a no brainer arrangement. It takes 1 second to learn them by position and you remember it forever. I plan on really enjoying using this calculator. I would compare it to the Subaru Cross Trek of automobiles. Hope this review helps someone. not learned how to use it yet; however