Jump to content



Photo
- - - - -

Is The Classpad300 Plus The Most Suitable For Dyslexics?


  • Please log in to reply
1 reply to this topic

#1 Promsan

Promsan

    Newbie

  • Members
  • Pip
  • 4 posts
  • Location:Great Britain

  • Calculators:
    "own"? what kind of freak says "own"?

Posted 05 February 2006 - 04:46 PM

Now then,

I'm editing this in the hope that it becomes a bit more useful as an FAQ on this subject, as there will always be people posting on this forum saying "which one shall I get?!" "which is the best?!", and to add something for pupils and students with Dyslexia, Asfedia, and Dyscalculia to find when they search the net.


As for me, I'm a (list coming!): Mature; Dyslexic; Asfedic; British; Foundation Year in Electronic Engineering student (it ticks a lot of "support" boxes I suppose).

...and I've also got a toddler, so I want a tool to save me precious time banging my head that checks my work and my working: allowing me to look at each step.

I'm not very rich, and I need a machine to help me make it through this course. I thought a cheapish calculator would do, but now I'm having second thoughts.

I've spent the last week absorbing and researching on t'internet and am now zeroing in on the:

Casio Classpad 300 plus; HP 49 G+; TI Voyage 200. They all seem to be obtainable for ?70-120 (depending on whether one goes for eBay or a proper shop).

What am I looking for?

1. Steps:
Nice clear step by step display of problems from simple Algebra to all the scary-lookin' stuff. I need to be able to see all the steps so I can see where I'm going wrong. (I love the idea of the Classpad being like a whole textbook/classroom/calculator you can sit on the toilet with and play with - but I'm not so sure about the touchscreen pen - sounds very "lose-able" to me).

2. Longevity:
I don't expect to be able to accumulate a cornucopia of calculators, so I want one that'll both "hold my hand" as a neophyte, and be one I can learn as I go, so by the time I'm hopefully in my final and/or Master year I know how to use it completely and it's still useful.

3. Display:
As mentioned, I've got trouble "processing text", and what I've seen of screenshots of a few of the aforementioned is quite appealing. I will try those emulators to get a feel for the layout, but I don't know how much of the real calculator they capture.

As it stands, despite finding the way the Classpad explains things as well as doing sums appealing, and despite reading how user-friendly the TI ones are, I feel myself being drawn towards the HP 49 G+... it might not have as big and pretty a screen as the others, but it smells of "properness", it seems like a "proper" calculator.
I'm generally the sort of person who prefers to get machines that do one main task, and do it well without breaking down (I'd never get a dual VHS and DVD player for instance).
I've been scanning through these pages this aft, but I'm still not 100% sure.

It seems that:

A. The ClassPad has the most POTENTIAL, but that it's unrealized - it might be right for me, as it seems to lead one through the basics, and has a nice big screen with a an attractive display.
It's tempting to think that investing in this one might be sensible if people (more knowledgeable than I) are at work developing more features, but will these be any use to an Electronics undergraduate?
I'm not sure if the pen is entirely user-friendly, it seems like the sort of thing that coudl easily get lost or broken.

B. The Voyage 200 seems to be well-supported, and has the same attractiveness features (nice big screen, pretty print,) of the have a lot of programmes on TI-Calc (including ones that show steps), but perhaps too many games and arguably pointless stuff.
Putting it side by side with the CP and the G+, it seems a little overpriced, seeing as though it's arguably mostly does the same things, and seems to lack useful features enjoyed by the other two (the HP's SD cards, and the CPs teaching support).

C. The HP49G+ seems to have a lot of very relevant and useful programmes (not as many as the TI ones), but has a slightly less impressive (i.e. cramped) display, but by all accounts it's the most suitable for an engineering student.
The only downside from my POV seems to be the lack of eActivities (to aid revision and learning) and the screen size and contrast control as on the CP300Plus (for someone like me with text processing disabilities it might matter).

http://www.hp.com/ca..._48gii_49gp.pdf
http://wwwstaff.murd...P300Starter.pdf
http://64.233.179.10...en&ct=clnk&cd=1
http://www.classpad....ures/berechnen/
As well as that comparison:
http://alpage.ath.cx...ute/compare.htm

I'm certainly into trying out these emulators:
the HP-49G+: http://www.hpcalc.or...ils.php?id=3644
the TI-89 Tit': http://www.ticalc.or.../309/30978.html
I don't know if this page has a CP emulator: http://users.keyacce...asiox/cpad.html

I thought I'd add this link to another post on this site, for the hell of it:
http://www.casiocalc...asspad emulator

I'd be very grateful/keen to hear the thoughts of those here.

cheers,

Jack

#2 Guest_TMM_*

Guest_TMM_*
  • Guests

Posted 16 February 2006 - 12:33 PM

I have a TI-89Titanium (voyager 200 without qwerty keyboard and small screen basically..) and a Classpad300 PLus and i must say the Classpad is harder to use. Highlighting things with a pen to copy and paste can be one big PITA at times -> i'd like a shift key please ^_^.

The Classpad has potential, is more stable (i can crash my ti89 at the drop of a hat with some dodgy code), and has a nice big screen.
But at the end of the day, i prefer the 89 for just doing equations. It just makes more sense then using a finiky pen to copy and paste.

I can't say much for HP, as i've never used one.

btw: no huge deal if you lose the classpad's pen - you can just use a normal pen or even your finger - anything that won't damage the screen.

-TMM




0 user(s) are reading this topic

0 members, 0 guests, 0 anonymous users