What is the most capable calculator?

parisse · New Member (Posts: 98)

I think you can not just tell that floating point is handled like on a poorly code android calculator without giving some examples, so that I can explain.
FYI, the floating point format used inside the HP Prime CAS is the "double" format (like in any standard programming language) but modified to keep only 48 bits of mantissa instead of 53 (with truncation to 0). Intermediate computations are done using 53 bits. The reason is that 5 bits are used to store the type of the object while keeping objects 64 bits large (the CAS must handle small integers, large integers, fractions, identifiers, polynomials, functions, symbolics, etc.).

komame · Newbie (Posts: 34)

Over the past two years, there have been several firmware updates, and it seems to me that these remarks probably refer to older firmware versions. As of today, using firmware r15515 (2025-09-15), I no longer observe such issues with PPL. If you know of any case that causes the device to crash, please provide an example—I would like to test it.

Of course, if you generate some huge object, for example a string of several dozen megabytes, and try to display it, then indeed the HP Prime may reboot. However, in normal programming scenarios, when I am not deliberately trying to force a crash, everything works stably.

Additionally, the precision of floating-point calculations in PPL has recently been significantly increased, with 64-bit values used for both the numerator and denominator (effectively operating like rational fractions), which provides unprecedented precision compared to other calculators.

The only thing one might possibly complain about on the HP Prime is the Python editor (the Python app UI in general). There, you can indeed still encounter some instability. However, these are specific cases that are already known, and if you are aware of them, they are easy to avoid.
Moreover, when using the Virtual Calculator (I use it on PC, but a new beta has just been released for Mac), you can develop in MicroPython using Visual Studio Code or another desktop editor and run the program directly in the Virtual Calculator (without the need to copy files or use the HP Connectivity Kit). This is very convenient.
Additionally, Python on the HP Prime is more than 10 times faster than PPL (for complex operations on lists it can be even up to 30 times faster), and you can do truly impressive things with it.

As for the lack of syntax error indication in a program (the yellow exclamation mark), I have not noticed this issue either. When you enter the Program Editor and press 'Check', the program compiles, and if there is a syntax error, the cursor is positioned exactly at the location of that error. If you know of a case where this does not work, please provide an example as well. I have access to the HP Prime bug tracker and would be happy to report issues to help get them fixed.

The only thing that is really missing is an update to the CAS. Here there is indeed a problem, and I hope this will change soon. However, if someone does not care about CAS, I would not hesitate at all in choosing it.

Travis · Power User (Posts: 434)

Such as, I suppose, the fact that pressing the Num key in the Python editor from the Symb view is virtually guaranteed to cause a crash and reboot, and even after a few years I updated the firmware and found this bug unfixed. We're talking something that less than five seconds of causal testing by the development team would have uncovered. (And I did try a factory reset, etc., so I know it's not just a glitch on my calculator.) This was the last nail in the coffin for the HP Prime and caused me to give up on it permanently. I cannot tolerate this sheer level of unprofessionalism and lack of competent testing in software development. This was after all the bugs and problems I had had with PPL in the early days, including issues with its own syntax containing ambiguities that cause it to be difficult to make it do what I actually want. I just can't call it a particularly well-designed or well thought out language, personally.

komame · Newbie (Posts: 34)

The issue you described doesn't occur in pure Python on the HP Prime; it only happens when you have the Python app active and try to run Python code using a PPL wrapper instead of running it directly. Essentially, you cannot call Python code via a PPL wrapper while you are inside the Python app, because you are attempting to initialize the already-running Python environment a second time (once as the app itself, and a second time as the wrapper). This causes a simultaneous double-launch of the Python environment, which results in a crash. I am certain this is what happened, as the problem only manifests under those specific conditions.

If you use pure Python (without the PPL wrapper), this issue won’t occur. And if you want to use Python via a PPL wrapper, simply don't run it within the Python app. Run it in any other app instead—for example, create your own app based on the "None" type and use the wrapper there as much as you like—and everything will remain stable.

My own workflow involves avoiding the Python app entirely; I create a custom "None" type app and run my Python code through the wrapper. Interestingly, the code can still reside in a file, as imports work exactly the same as if you were running it directly in Python. This approach provides full stability, allows you to edit code within the PPL Program Editor without anything crashing, and offers incredible performance.

In my opinion, if the dedicated Python app didn't exist on the HP Prime (which wouldn't prevent you from creating Python-based apps, you’d just have to switch to the PPL UI), there wouldn't be nearly as many negative comments.

I own several calculators—the TI-84 Plus CE, nSpire CX CAS and CAS II, Numworks N0120, Casio CG50, and Casio Math+—and I don't see any of them as serious competition for the HP Prime.