HP 12c Financial Calculator (12C#ABA)

The HP 12C's functions include all the basics--such as calculating APR, NPV, and IRR--and statistics are a snap. For students new to financial calculators, this is an excellent place to start. For the most part, the manual reads like a minitextbook, walking you through sample problems and situations followed by graphs and tables demonstrating the technique--and you can even check your results. The section on creating programs does seem to be written for the technically ignorant, addressing in detail how you could possibly benefit from using programs, but it'll still help you get the job done.

In general, it's a bit slower than newer models, just like last year's computer isn't as speedy as today's new release. On the plus side, it's just 3 by 5 inches and slips easily into a pocket. The bottom is printed with a few little cheat notes for common functions, which is nice for quick reference. The HP 12C's one-year warranty and available tech-support line offer reassurance this little workhorse will continue to be an industry standard for years to come. --Jill Lightner

Pros:

• Pocket size
• Thorough and simple instruction manual
• Competitive price

Cons:

• Calculates more slowly than modern machines

If you calculate mortgages, compound interest, amortization or any of the common functions in finance on a regular basis, you can't go wrong with this classic calculator, long a standard of the industry. The 120 built-in functions are easy to use and well explained by the manual. Don't see a function you need? You can enter your own mathematical function, too.

If you DON'T do financial calculations regularly, but are in school for anything but science, this is also a great choice. You can even learn a lot about financial calculations just from the manual. (For science students and scientists, HP makes a scientific version calculator with statistical functions instead of financial ones.)

If you are a regular person looking for a calculator, I REALLY recommend this one--we all borrow money (car loans, house mortgages) now and then. And RPN, Reverse Polish Notation is SO logical and easy to use once you practice. (Simply put, to add two plus two = four, you enter 2 +, 2+ = and the answer is there. VERY fast for long calculations, like balancing a checkbook.)

I find that the horizontal design (wider than long) is extremely comfortable to hold. And the 12C is very rugged. I used to know a guy from HP who was a rep for the calculator division. He'd demo them by slamming the HP12C against the wall, and then daring the rep from the Big Lone Star State Instruments firm to do the same with theirs. No contest.


The only one calculator you'll ever need   November 5, 2000
48 out of 50 found this review helpful

Why would you buy a 1980's calculator? Because it provides the best combination of form and function.

While other calculators have gone high-end and become curiosities of mathematics and graphics, HP's customers do not want to let go of the 12-C, despite the fact that HP has more powerful calculators at a slightly larger price. Here's why I think:

Just the right set of features. The average Joe using a financial calculator needs no more than the HP-12C provides.

Sturdy and strong. The keys have a wonderful feel.

Fits in a shirt pocket.

Very reliable. They've had two decades to iron out any bugs.

Large user base. Most financial courses will use this as the calculator of choice

Buy this calculator, if you need a financial calculator. You will not regret it -- I daresay that it will still be around when your kids need their own calculators.


Not the best HP for the Money   September 27, 2000
Fritz-The-Cat (In The South, USA)
32 out of 39 found this review helpful

I have used (and own) many of the available financial calculators on the market. I own and occasionally use a Hewlett-Packard 12C, but would "recommend" the HP-10B to my university finance students, both graduate and undergraduate, as well as to finance professionals. For non-professionals or for just run-of-the-mill arithmetic calculations there is no question, this is too much calculator.

HP makes the best products on the market for financial calculators; better than TI's and far superior to the Casio. The HP 12C is an older (ca. 1980's) model calculator which was a directly positioned competitor to the TI MBA, but HP's entry was far superior. The keys feel more solid, the machine itself "seems" better made, and the replaceable batteries were much better and lighter than the TI's rechargeable. So, TI gave up on this competition. Now, HP has cannibalized its own line with a superior product at a lower cost.

Having worn out more than one of each, my experience has been that the HP 10B offers everything needed for the serious finance student, at just over half the price.

The HP 10B, as well the 12C, have well written manual manuals, including examples on using the functions. HP has the manuals available on-line on their website for the inevitable time that the user needs it and has lost the original.

While there are cheaper financial calculators, it seems that the HP 10B level is the minimum I would recommend to professionals or students. Less expensive versions, while saving a few dollars, miss important features. As a general rule of thumb, if the calculator can perform the "IRR" function, as the the 12C and 10B can, it will be able to handle pretty much any calculation into which the finance student, professonal, or banker will run. Lesser machines do not have this function, which enables analysis of variable cash flows.

Ironically, the larger fancier calculators, such as the venerable HP-12C, are in my estimation inferior. The 12C uses RPN logic which, while saving keystrokes, is simply foreign to most students. More importantly, some functions, such as the Time Value of Money functions, on the 12C require interpretation. On the 12C, for example, solving for the number of periods in an annuity, the value gets rounded UP to the next integer.

While the 12C is a very powerful machine, and certainly deserves some points for "style," it is not the best value in financial calculators. It may be time, after almost 30 years, to relegate this one to the museum in favor of its more powerful and less expensive cousins.


Sturdy Workhorse   November 15, 2002
E. Arentsen (California)
26 out of 26 found this review helpful

I've been using this calculator so long, over fifteen years, that I can't imagine working without it. When I bought this thing it was alone in the field of financial calculators and the 12C is still the standard by which other calculators are judged. It has become the standard "tool of the trade" for financial professional types. I have a senior position with a leading money management firm and I require all of my financial analysts to learn how to master this tool. Learning to master the functions is like taking a review course in finance. The calculator can be used for a variety of financial functions including calendar (day count), interest, cash flow, IRR, compounding, NPV, standard deviation, weighted average, simple programming and more. The calculator is nearly indestructible which can be very handy when a trade goes against you and the calculator is suddenly flying across a trading room. The calculator has a nice form factor, the buttons are easy to use, it fits in a shirt pocket, and it has an auto shut off for battery conservation.

There are other calculators available from HP such as the 10B for about a third the price and the 17B for about the same price. The 10B is inferior to the 12C and I see little reason to buy it. The 17B has greater functionality than the 12C, but I feel it is harder to master, harder to navigate, and it does not fit in a shirt pocket. However, the 17B does allow users to work in standard algebraic or RPN modes. The 12 works only in RPN (Reverse Polish Notation) which can be difficult to get used to. For example using RPN to add 1 and 2 you enter 1 2 . In simple algebraic notation the key sequence is 1 2 <= or enter key>. The difference is that with RPN you enter the operation (plus, minus, etc.) after you enter the values. With simple algebraic you enter the operation between the values.

Overall, this is the "industry standard" calculator for financial professionals and is recommended by AIMR for people taking the CFA exam. I would not recommend this calculator for casual home use as it does take some time to master, but once mastered it is a very powerful tool.


Best choice in Financial calculators   August 23, 2000
22 out of 22 found this review helpful

I've had my HP 12C since 1982. They cost($$) then. It spent 5years rattling around in my college bookbag. Now I use it daily at work and have dropped it many times. While some may say it is slow, you'll never notice a speed problem on regular arithmetic calculations. The RPN feature makes complex calculations easy to enter. Its easy to learn and you won't have to lend it to your co-workers in meetings because most of them don't know RPN!

I hope HP gives plenty of notice before discontinuing this calculator. I'll buy another just in case mine breaks in a decade or two. END