Texas Instruments TI-86 Graphic Calculator

Pros: Does everything you need for Pre-Calc, lightweight, good display screen
Cons: No fractions, Doesn't do the things you need in higher calculus classes

I bought this calculator when I was in my Senior year of High School. I used it for my Physics and Trigonometry classes. I later used it in college for my pre-calculus course. As soon as I learned how to use the TI-86 I wished I had bought it when I...

Pros: lots of memory, very nice overall, plenty of power, great battery life, very durable
Cons: TI's worst interface, not much of a market, outclassed by later products

I was required to have a graphing calculator as early as 10th grade. When the old one was "lost" (which unfortunately is a nice way of putting stolen) I decided I might as well upgrade to an 86. It looked better on the package, had more memory...

Pros: Powerful, ease of usage, looks nice, pretty intuitive to use
Cons: May take a little time to learn advanced features

Texas Instruments, abbreviated “TI” and maker of a number of computer and calculator products (including the first microchip), is widely renowned for their great products. The TI-86 doesn’t break this tradition of excellence—in fact, it goes a long way...

Pros: Perfect for pre-calc and first level calculus, memory
Cons: Difficult to learn, slow graphing, lacks 3D graphing option for higher level calculus courses

I felt like a genius having the TI 86 Graphing Calculator in my 11th grade pre-calculus class. While everyone else was struggling with their small pocket sized devices, I could do a problem with a push of a button. Sounds good, right?

I have...

Pros: deriving function, very durable, has a pretty curve on the front
Cons: may not actually change my underwear for me

My high-school teacher used to say that about our TI85s. Little did she know that is exactly what the TI86s do. The TI86s actually change your underwear too. Well, maybe not quite your underwear, but they will change your grade.

I do not...

Pros: graphs lots of stuff, games, memory for storing stuff, large display window
Cons: no lists, more difficult to learn than the TI-83

Ok, I've previously written about the TI-83, which is the standard for graphing calculators in my school, and several other high schools I've come across in Brooklyn. Recently, I've familiarized myself with the TI-86 in my Advanced Placement physics...

Pros: Large Storage Memory Allowing You To Play Games!
Cons: More difficult to use than the 82, 83, and 83 plus

Pros: Large Storage Memory Allowing You To Play Games!
Cons: More difficult to use than the 82, 83, and 83Plus


For my freshman year, I decided to buy the TI-82. After two years of using it, someone has stolen it. I felt stupid and...

Pros: Games. Durable. Long Battery Life. Relativly high memory.
Cons: Graphing is slow sometimes. Kinda hard to learn all the features.

I've had the Ti-86 for a year now. I convinced my mom to buy me one because, "My friend, Eric, says it helped him out alot last year and I'll be needing one in a few years anyway." Those reasons were valid, but the real reason I wanted one was...

Pros: Conversions, Graphing, Matrices, and other functions
Cons: sometimes confusing, takes time to learn

I have had my TI-86 for 5 years, I got it in middle school and I have been using it ever since then. The TI-86 Helped me through: Algebra, Geometry, Algebra II, and College Algebra and I plan on using it in Calculus. When I first got my calculator I ...

Pros: useful for math
Cons: slow graphing

I bought my beloved TI-86 a little over a year ago. It's quite a versatile and useful graphing calculator for all math, including Calculus and Trigonomety.

There are a lot of functions on this calculator that have made my high school...

Pros: Programmable
Cons: Takes a long time to learn all the ins and outs

A few years ago I was required by my degree plan to take Trig in order to finish my quest for the Computer Sciences degree. I didn't then and still don't understand why I had to have such advanced math for programming, but I do have to admit that it...

Pros: Many features, easy to use
Cons: Has it's flaws, some items too hard to get to or do not perform as best as possible

I must tell you, I always liked the TI-86, but I'd heard such interesting things about the TI-89 that I just had to compare. After seeing both the 86 and the much acclaimed 89, I can't help but think that anybody who prefers anything over the 86 would...

Pros: easy to find functions, size
Cons: price,

I recently went shopping for a graphing calculator after my TI-83 decided to fry the night before a quiz in my calculus class in which we needed a graphing calculator. I borrowed my friends TI-89 for the quiz and went shopping for a new one...

Pros: Wonderful features, looks and feels nice, excellent resolution.
Cons: Sometimes too slow, but very rarely.

When I learned I was going to need a graphing calculator, the choice was not an easy one! There are so many to choose from! And it seemed so difficult; it was hard to tell what each one did that the others didn't. After much thought and observation, I...

Pros: Lots of Functions
Cons: Can't receive info from lower level calculator

Being a high school senior last year and quite overwhelmed with the college level course AP Calculus I needed a new calculator. My TI-72 scientific one just wasn't going to cut it. So I ventured out to the nearest Wal-Mart and browsed through the hanging...