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Calculator Community => Other Calculators => Topic started by: saintrunner on January 06, 2012, 11:19:16 pm

Title: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: saintrunner on January 06, 2012, 11:19:16 pm
So I have seen a lot of cool stuff come out for nspires, and I am quite interested! Could someone share with me the pro-s and con-s of buying one and of the calcs themselves!? :)
Specifically a nspire cx

 thanks!
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: jwalker on January 06, 2012, 11:20:18 pm
YES!!
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: epic7 on January 06, 2012, 11:24:32 pm
I agree, yes :D
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: willrandship on January 06, 2012, 11:24:56 pm
Pros:
You'll have access to the most powerful graphing calculator on the market (prizm is weaker hw, original nspire holds less than cx)
You'll have a color GB emulator
You'll be able to make color calc games on the go

Cons:
More expensive than any other calc on the market (aside from V200s maybe, not sure)
Ndless 3 isn't out yet, so you'll have to wait
You won't get to use any Prizm games n stuff
You have to have a touchpad
You won't have access to any keypad-related hacks (although the dock will still be there)
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: saintrunner on January 06, 2012, 11:25:13 pm
Any whys or why nots?
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: willrandship on January 06, 2012, 11:26:23 pm
You should read my post :P

Quick posting happens
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: jwalker on January 06, 2012, 11:27:21 pm
why: it is awesome, Im in alg. 2 and it is realy usefull, Lua is awesome
why not: if you like to be like everyone else and everyone else has an 84 then you get my point :), also can be $pendy
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: saintrunner on January 06, 2012, 11:29:56 pm
Oh sorry, anyway this sounds awesome! what price should i expect?
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: willrandship on January 06, 2012, 11:31:15 pm
Amazon has some nice deals. Do you care about it being CAS? That raises the price a bit, but there's no longer a reason to not want one outside of standardized tests since they removed 84+ support.
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: epic7 on January 06, 2012, 11:32:27 pm
I got mine for $134 on amazon
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: jwalker on January 06, 2012, 11:32:36 pm
well on ti's website back in august when i was looking to buy a CX CAS it was $175, i went to vernier and got it for like $135, i imagine the price has droped some and if you  arnt looking for the CAS type i imagine it would run from $130 - $150, of course i read some where that someone got it for like $125, tho
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: annoyingcalc on January 06, 2012, 11:33:12 pm
I got my cx for $164
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: willrandship on January 06, 2012, 11:33:22 pm
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=nspire+cx&x=0&y=0

They sell it at $130 for a non-cas new.
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: saintrunner on January 06, 2012, 11:33:59 pm
I already have a 84+ and an 84+se. CAS? what do you suggest?
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: jwalker on January 06, 2012, 11:36:01 pm
just went to vernier was $138 for a CX CAS, and get a CAS but hold onto the other calcs if your going to take the ACT
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: epic7 on January 06, 2012, 11:36:30 pm
Ti's chart said cas isn't used for algebra, despite cas actually being computer algebra system (or something like that) :P

I got non-cas to be safe since I have algebra 2 next year
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: jwalker on January 06, 2012, 11:38:15 pm
ohhhh, CAS is so usefull for checking answers, especialy if you have a teacher that expects alot of work, were into polynomials and this thing is saving my ass bigtime :)
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: saintrunner on January 06, 2012, 11:42:24 pm
Well I'll look more around for some deals!
Thanks guys :)
 and for the record i won't ever get rid of my other calcs! lol just add to them
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: jwalker on January 06, 2012, 11:43:42 pm
yah ive still got the old blue clickpad still around for the act and 84 plus programming. wouldnt give it up either :)
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: saintrunner on January 06, 2012, 11:48:13 pm
ooh yeah :)
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: jwalker on January 06, 2012, 11:49:06 pm
that thing was awesome when i got it, still is
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: saintrunner on January 06, 2012, 11:52:21 pm
I'll have to let you guys know what I think when I get one!
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: jwalker on January 06, 2012, 11:52:51 pm
k sounds good :)
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: Lionel Debroux on January 07, 2012, 01:25:01 am
The CAS of Nspire calcs is hardly more powerful than that of TI-68k calcs (nowadays, the 89T), and there are many more games and math programs for the TI-68k series than for the Nspire series.
I'd say, it depends on whether you need a calculator for the short term (in which case you can get a used 89T for way less than $100, and still enjoy math programs and a number of games), or a calculator for the long term, with lots of storage space (but much less programmable in the short term, and probably in the long term as well, because TI's philosophy has unfortunately changed a lot).
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: TIfanx1999 on January 07, 2012, 10:30:21 am
I'd pretty much have to agree with Lionel. The 68k calcs. are a nice cheaper alternative if you are interested in a CAS. They also have more programs available as mentioned above. ;)
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: jwalker on January 07, 2012, 10:43:28 am
even though the basic stinks outside of math and science programs, lua is prety good and i guess its getting better with the next OS update.
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: Nick on January 07, 2012, 10:47:02 am
this one's quite difficult.. nspire is really nice, and the graphical possibilities are good, but it's not cheap, i bought mine for €125 (which is still quite cheap as i hear the other prices)

but if you want to combine the color, the good screen, and a lot of (coming) programs, you should do it
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: jwalker on January 07, 2012, 10:50:23 am
i definately agree with nick, also it similar to using a computer, you have the shortcuts too like Ctrl+c and Ctrl + v
and programs are definately comming, not saying there arent quite a few already :)
ive use an 89t and i definately wouldnt abandon my CX CAS over it
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: cyanophycean314 on January 07, 2012, 12:05:04 pm
The 89 probably has a good CAS and a cheaper price. It has more programs and better support. If it's more math, I would go for the 89. I hate my Nspire for math. The buttons are in such weird positions! I dislike the touchpad and the bad button springs. I stick to the 84 with math, but for a CAS you could get a 89.

Programming on the Nspire is another story. I love Lua. Ndless will soon be coming out (hopefully), so C will be available. The GBC emulator for Nspire will be very nice for gaming!

I would probably get a Nspire just for the gaming, as my parents do not approve me carrying around gameboys and DSs.
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: jwalker on January 07, 2012, 12:07:57 pm
hm, i realy like the touchpad and the buttons arnt that wierd...
the CX has realy good buttons i thought
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: Nick on January 07, 2012, 12:27:13 pm
the cx' buttons suck.. really, they are so annoying, you don't feel like "i just pushed a button" when you push a button, which you have with the 84+

the touchpad isn't good either, it gets activated when you don't need it, but when you need it, you can sit there moving you finger over the touchpad in all possible ways, but the mouse won't appear xs

but i like the OS's layout, it's really good imo, it's very light-weight, and the screen is good..
lua is developping, but don't count to much on ndless, since it might be broken up with the same OS update the lua gets improved, so it might be a choice between a better lua interpreter, or ndless.. a hard choice, for which i probably make the decision towards the lua

that's it i think :)
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: jwalker on January 07, 2012, 12:34:27 pm
wow, i must have got a realy good CX then :)
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: Lionel Debroux on January 07, 2012, 12:35:44 pm
Yeah, all Nspire keyboards suck, both for finger feel / confidence and for typing mixed text + figures.
Letters on the Nspire are tiny - and yet, I have long, thin fingers.
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: Adriweb on January 07, 2012, 12:36:38 pm
Yeah, all Nspire keyboards suck, both for finger feel / confidence and for typing mixed text + figures.
Letters on the Nspire are tiny - and yet, I have long, thin fingers.
I got used to it, and now I'm don't think it's bad :)
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: jwalker on January 07, 2012, 12:38:32 pm
i dont know, ive never had any problems with the keyboard
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: Nick on January 07, 2012, 12:49:21 pm
i'm not saying i'm having troubles with it, you get used to it, but still it isn't the oldschool fashioned way like the 84+..
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: Kjelddy on January 07, 2012, 01:04:44 pm
I got my CX for €60 but that was due a sale for math teachers and I luckily know one very well :P. I haven't got a CAS because I can't use it on my math exams.
I have the calc in use since the beginning of this schoolyear and so far I am really pleased with it :). for games it's really fun to play in colour and most of the games I played were well made. one thing I really like are the different colours used while plotting graphs so it's very easy to see what formula goes with what graph.

pro's
colour
use of shortcuts like ctr + c
simply typing certain functions like : ans ,tan etc
document tree structure (OS 3.0 i think)
about 100 mb free space (loads in calc community)

con's
the keys might not suit you (although i have had no problems at all)
touchpad isn't great
click's are based on touch on the touchpad
expensive

that's about it what i can think of
@epic why it isn't listed on the ti chart for use in algebra because the calc does what the student needs to do himself most of the times(without the use of a calc).
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: willrandship on January 07, 2012, 01:07:23 pm
CAS calcs can do calculus operations ie. Derivatives, integrals, as well as solve complex algebraic ones.

Solve(x+15-y^2+32x^2=z+15,y) returns y=sqrt(-z+x+32x^2)

Oh, and Kjeiddy doc trees have always been available in the nspire.
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: jwalker on January 07, 2012, 01:08:30 pm
my teacher kind of pushes the "do it yourself stuff", at least in the easy chapters and if your in algebra 2 you should be able to.
we use them more frequently now tho since we are getting into the harder stuff...
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: Nick on January 07, 2012, 01:12:10 pm
@Kjelddy you can choose to ste it on a real click, or on a touch..

and for that usage in class i'm lucky :) my teachers can't work with it, and i have to show them the functions and usage of it..
maybe you've seen it or not, but in the download section there's a program i made for reflection of light (physics)
so i had a question about the lesson and went to the teacher with that program running to show him what was my problem.
when i showed it he was like Ö and it took wuite a while before he started answering because he was fascinated about the fact that what i made was possible with that calc..

The teacher didn't even know... Ö
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: jwalker on January 07, 2012, 01:15:53 pm
i know! when i first got my Nspire he couldnt realy help me with it, but that was a few years ago now and he seems to know alot more about them
EDIT: i dont think he knows i program
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: cyanophycean314 on January 07, 2012, 01:25:31 pm
Our school has mandated that everybody in all higher math starting with Algebra II, get a Nspire CX CAS. That's how I got mine, but I still use my 84 in math. The Nspire is very slow for typing things especially for pretty experienced 84 users. Pressing buttons to find tan or pi or other symbols is not fun. The touchpad sensitivity is on the whole very bad.

Don't get me wrong. I still love the Nspire! Programming/Gaming ftw!  :D
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: jwalker on January 07, 2012, 01:30:06 pm
when i got my clickpad i started with teh 84+ keypad and used it quite a bit, i didnt have to much trouble switching over to the clickpad tho, and i didnt have much trouble switching to the touchpad, its sensitivity is kinda high tho
and an Nspire can be intimidating, everyone else in my class thinks its so complex and so hard to use, when it is actualy prety easy...
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: Stefan Bauwens on January 10, 2012, 05:47:54 am
A nspire(cx) is a nice calculator. And with ndless comming(soon?) out you'll be able to play doom and other C programs. Lua is fun too. And the color is too. :D
It is true that the 89 has more programs(very cool ones too(even DOOM 89) ) but it's community is atm still kinda dead. Although I and some other people try to help it by making programs for it. :P Both are nice calcs. But I have for sure to agree that a(second hand) 89 can be very cheap. I bought one on a 2nd hand site one(but it was brand new anyway) for 26 euro!(included shipping).

Anyway, you might wanna read this: http://ourl.ca/14134
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: scubadiver102 on March 08, 2012, 09:57:09 pm
I got a TI-Nspire CX CAS on Amazon for about $150. Plus, it was being sold by Amazon. I love getting good deals.  :)
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: DJ Omnimaga on March 09, 2012, 05:52:36 pm
It's still that expensive even in USA on Amazon?? O.O

I thought you could get it used for like $80-120 there or Ebay ???, but again maybe the CAS is really more expensive than I thought. I just remember people getting TI-89s for $100 or less and they were the same price as the TI-Nspire CAS or close.

That said it's much better than here, though. In Canada it costs $195 for a TI-Nspire non-CAS.
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: Mighty Moose on March 09, 2012, 06:04:15 pm
That said it's much better than here, though. In Canada it costs $195 for a TI-Nspire non-CAS.

O.O

And to think I got my Classic TI-Nspire CAS for ~$45 on Amazon...
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: Spacetime4.0 on March 09, 2012, 09:03:12 pm
I paid $96 for my non-cas, brand new, off ebay about 2 years and I'm lovin it. The nspire is great. In MY opinion it's the best ti-calc ever made 8), if not a little closed to programmers.
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: BrownyTCat on March 09, 2012, 09:04:22 pm
I paid $96 for my non-cas, brand new, off ebay about 2 years and I'm lovin it. The nspire is great. In MY opinion it's the best ti-calc ever made 8), if not a little closed to programmers.
Support-wise it's worthless
Hardware-wise it's amazing; we now have as many Mhz to work with as a common 386 PC.
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: cyanophycean314 on March 09, 2012, 10:16:42 pm
I got a TI-Nspire CX CAS on Amazon for about $150. Plus, it was being sold by Amazon. I love getting good deals.  :)

That's pretty expensive... Mine was around $130, from the school.

That said it's much better than here, though. In Canada it costs $195 for a TI-Nspire non-CAS.

O.O

And to think I got my Classic TI-Nspire CAS for ~$45 on Amazon...

Insanity  :o 45 dollars?!
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: olivermadsen on April 18, 2012, 12:05:23 pm
If you are thinking about going to higher math classes (Calculus, Linear Algebra) it can be very helpful. To have a calculator with a CAS. The Nspire CX CAS is the calculator I use in AP Calculus AB and it is really helpful. If you are only in Alg 2, it is a little impractical. I used an 84 and an 86 in Alg 2.
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: turiqwalrus on April 18, 2012, 12:35:09 pm
I got a TI-Nspire CX CAS on Amazon for about $150. Plus, it was being sold by Amazon. I love getting good deals.  :)
That's pretty expensive... Mine was around $130, from the school.
I just ordered mine on amazon for a grand total of 133.33 Euro :D
Title: Re: Should I get a nspire?
Post by: DJ Omnimaga on April 18, 2012, 01:50:21 pm
I don't like Amazon personally. Even when used, their stuff is too expensive compared to Ebay.