HP 12C Financial Calculator

This is an awesome financial calculator. Can do literally everything from simple math to discounted cash flows, depreciation, statistics, etc., etc. I purchased my first one in 1992 and 34 years later it finally retired. The app that mimics this calculator just isn't the same.

The 12C is something you don't see every day: A sure thing. Buy a 12C and you'll never want or need another calculator. Ever.I have two calculators on my desk. An HP 12C that I bought in 1984 and an HP 16C (a programmer's calculator based on the same design as the 12C) that I bought in 1982. I use them both every day. I've replaced the batteries three times in 20 years. (Yeah, you read that right: three times.) These calculators are rugged, reliable, and easy-to-use.Last year I bought my wife a 12C. She had never used an RPN calculator before and it felt "foreign" to her at first. That lasted about an hour. Now she hates to use another calculator. Sure, it's a little bit of a learning curve (not much really), but once you learn it you'll find that it's more natural and far easier to use than an algebraic calculator.According to Moore's Law computers double in speed and half in size every 18 months, yet a calculator first released in 1982 continues to out-perform everything that has tried to replace it? How is that possible? Elegant design. As an engineer I continue to be impressed by the simple elegance of a design that has held up so well to the test of time.One final note: HP has released an "updated" version of the 12C called the 12C Platinum (or 12cp). It's not the same calculator. It has a flimsier case, the buttons don't feel as "sure" and it's not faster (in spite of the claims).I've had my 12C for 20 years and I've never seen a calculator that I'd rather use. This is a sure thing. Don't pass it up.

I've used HP 12Cs for at least thirty years. They are wonderful. I wore one out and needed a new one and it's working great.

After purchasing the calculator, the battery died within three months of light usage. In contrast, I purchased the same type of calculator 15 years ago, and the battery has never been changed and was used more often and still going. I’ll be at this new. Calculator is faster when it was working, but that was short-lived.

No keypads are as good as the legacy HP12Cs. But they're too slow. The 30th Anniv edition had great keypad, I loved them, but the calculators were not robust like the old legacy 12Cs.. I've gone through 2ea 30th Anniv editions and won't spend the current $300 asking price for them now. But I found an even better solution!Solution: buy a new or good used inexpensive12C that uses 2ea CR2032 batteries. Remove the footpads with a blunt knife. Remove the batteries. Remove all the screws with a small jewelers Phillips screwdriver and with the keypad side down carefully unsnap the covers and gently fold the back to the left; careful don't break the wire connections (although I have done and had to resolder them)!Use two cut two pieces of manilla folder (or better, one piece where the hinge doubles the thickness) to cover the circuit board, placing them over the circuit board just to the right of the wire connections. Size: just under 4" by just over 2", but measure it yourself. What you are doing is putting a backstop to the keyboard, making it much more sensitive to finger pressure. Simply lay the 2 thicknesses over the circuit board and fold the back cover gently on to the front cover and snap back in place. Replace the 6 screws. insert batteries and test it. Put a thin coat of rubber cement on the footpads and replace them.I've edited this review and this is the step by step with pix:1. Removing the foot pads2. There are 6 screws, 1 Smaller and 5 Larger3. Snapping the case apart4. Open is to the left as if it had a hinge, careful not to break the wire soldering5. Cut your manilla folder; I cut it at the hinge so it folds over for two layers6. Place the cut out on the board. NOTE: a bit of scotch tape helps; be careful to tape it over plastic sections of the circuit board only, not any visible metal circuit board contacts, bcz the glue on the tape may be conductive. Also notice that on this 12C two layers of folder were not enough. The 4, 5, & 6 keys were still not as responsive as my 30th Anniv Edition so I had to add some more thickness to a section of the keys. You’ll only know this if you reassemble and the case and test it. (Of course, don’t cement the footpads until you you’ve screwed the cover back on.) ALSO! Be careful to make sure the LED display is correctly seated or the case won’t snap together on top; you’ll know this bcz the case won’t snap on top near the display when you reassemble.8. Screw the case together, a bit of rubber cement on the back of the footpads, wait about 10min for them to dry, and you’re good.9. You’ve just made a $300 30th Anniv edition 12C!The problem with the latest models is that the factory hasn’t anchored the keypad to the circuit board sufficiently and the keyboard has some ‘slop.’ So, when you press the keys the circuit board ‘gives’ and the keys don’t have a firm backing, so the keys don’t respond. (The older models had several welds between the keypad and the circuit board; the new ones don’t.)I don’t think the new 12Cs will last as long as the legacy 12Cs, but this is such an inexpensive fix that you can buy these used all day long at a bargain and run them into the ground. This one I picked this one up for $18 used, but new condition. Someone clearly returned it bcz of the key problems. You can make your own $300 12C 30th Anniv cheaply since so many of these are returned and are resold at a bargainCongrats! You just saved ~$250 or more!9.22.20 Update: I just did another one that required another layer over the 4, 5, and 6 keys. So I had the two initial layers, plus a third layer over the numbers area. But even that wasn't enough for the 4, 5, and 6 keys. I had to tape an even smaller patch over the 4, 5, 6 area: 4 layers of manilla folder thickness. It works a charm. It feels for all the world like a 30th Anniv edition. So, before you reinstall the footpads, give it good test and if needed, go back in and add another/more layer(s).

I've been using this HP financial calculator since my college days, over 50 years ago. I think I'm on my third one. My first one lasted over 25 years. I'm glad HP hasn't discontinued this model.

quick turn time and great price

O produto chegou antes do prazo e em perfeitas condições. Ainda estou aprendendo a utilizar para uso na faculdade mas em princípio está funcionando tudo corretamente. Acompanha uma capa protetora bem resistente. Compraria novamente.

I had been thinking of getting it for long time. Finally got it. Build quality is good and keys are tactile. Is very small for the power it has. Highly recommended

Una gran calculadora y un gran precio

Vecchissimo prodotto HP, quando l'azienda era al primo posto nell'innovazione. Funzionalissimo, resistentissimo (lo ho comprato per un backup del mio HP 10C, che ha almeno 30 anni di attività; ma quello nuovo quanto durerà ?). Copre tutte le esigenze del calcolo finanziario (ma l'altro modello è fondamentale per l'ingegnere ed il matematico, en géneral. Il principale minus è che non stampa. Occorre anche dire che ciò e' meglio per evitare distrazioni con i calcolo, dovendo scrivere su carta i risultsti dei tuoi conti. Difficile da digerire il data entry per i calcoli: la "notazione inversa Polacca". Io mi sono abituato imediatamente, a suo tempo. Ma quando ti sei abituato ad usarlo, non ne potrai più fare a meno. Io ne avevo naturalmente un altro. Disperavo fosse ancora in vendita. Per fortuna "Amazon c'è !!!". Non sorprende che sia venduto ancora in Germania, dove in calcolo è una grande necessità. Congratulazioni Amazon !!!

Me gusta la notación polaca inversa , el tacto de las teclas, la programación y el diseño del teclado. En fin, una gozada de calculadora para los conocedores del RPN y HP.El manual en español está en internet y es muy didáctico.