Friday, November 18, 2011

The Best Calculator for Calculus III

A graphing Calculator is one of the most useful tools to have while taking any Calculus course. If it was put on a list of importance it would placed second just behind your brain being number one. So which calculator should you invest in? There is a specific method of choosing one or often times two calculators for your calculus course. Here is all the information you will need to make an educated decision.

Why Do I Need Two Calculators? 
Many students own two calculators. One "normal" graphing calculator and one "smart" graphing calculator. The "normal" graphing calculator is safe to use on tests, quizzes, and homework. Why is it safe? Because of the fact that it will not give you exact answers to complex Calculus problems. It will instead assist you with smaller calculations while allowing you to do the rest of the work on your own. The "smart" calculator is the exact opposite. It will allow you enter in entire problems such as triple integrals and receive a exact answer that can include fractions, squareroots, and pi. For this reason these calculators are often banned in the class room and not allowed to be used on tests, quizzes, or homework. Having one of each calculator will help you get exact answers whenever you need it outside of the classroom while still having a proper calculator for inside the class room.

Calculators We Recommend

     TI-84 Plus Silver Edition (normal)         TI-89 Titanium Edition (normal/smart)                            
                            


Choosing a Graphing Calculator Step #1
Research you Calculus course and find out if that specific class requires a certain brand and/or model of calculator. Often times lower division Calculus courses will ask for a specific calculator so that the instructor can easily teach students how to use a graphing calculator. If a specific calculator is required start by purchasing that calculator.

Choosing a Graphing Calculator Step #2
Find out what brand/model everyone else is using. Having the same calculator as the other students you will be studying with will make it easier to learn. One the most popular brands of calculators is Texas Instruments. They have both "normal" and "smart" graphing calculators for great prices that are well known by students. There's a very good chance that this is the brand your classmates will be using.

Choosing a Graphing Calculator Step #3
Purchase you calculator online for the best price. Buying two calculators can be expensive! So make sure you get the best deal by purchasing online. I'll provide a list of the best online prices of Texas Instruments graphing calculators.

Our Recommendation
From experience we recommend you first start with a TI-84 from Texas Instruments. This Calculator will easily get you through your Pre-Calculus, Calculus I, and Calculus II courses. At this point we strongly encourage buying a TI NSPIRE CX to prepare for Calculus III. This Calculator is top of the line and will prove to have all of the tools you need to succeed in you Calculus courses as well any other math related courses further in your education.

Happy Calculating!

-Dylan Miller

6 comments:

  1. Yes you are correct. Most of the math students using the smart graphing calculators, Because it has more options to resolve our math problems. Now a days easy to solve trigonometry problems with the help of Trigonometry Apps

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  3. nice. i think you should visit this site also. http://bit.ly/2EK5VXj

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