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When HP introduced the HP-35 Scientific Calculator—the first scientific
handheld calculator—a small revolution took place in shirt
pockets around the world. It began in the early 1970s, when HP
co-founder Bill Hewlett, impressed by the small size of an
arithmetic calculator he'd seen, became convinced that HP
could expand the technology into a pocket-size calculator
capable of performing trigonometric, logarithmic and
exponential functions. The result was the HP-35 Scientific Calculator—a product
that fundamentally changed the way engineers, scientists,
mathematicians and students worked and banished the slide rule
to the history books.
A
marketing study done in early 1971 warned HP that there was a
small market for a pocket-sized calculator with scientific and
mathematical functionality—it also recommended that the new
calculator be the size of a typewriter or adding machine. But
Bill Hewlett was convinced that engineers would prefer a
calculator that would fit into a shirt pocket. Bill was right.
In the first three years after its introduction in
1972, sales of the HP-35 Scientific Calculator exceeded 300,000 units. The little
"electronic slide rule" weighed only nine ounces (255 grams).
Named for its 35 keys, the device made it possible to make
complicated calculations in the field and on the road with the
speed and accuracy that surpassed that of a slide rule. It
sold for $395 (U.S.).
"I did everything I could to set deadlines and break
logjams," said Bill Hewlett in a 1976 interview. "Actually,
from the time the product was designed until it was introduced
covered less than a year. There was tremendous esprit de corps
and excitement."
Before the introduction of the HP-35 Scientific Calculator, most people
calculated more complex mathematical operations with a slide
rule. If you were born after 1960, chances are you've never
used a slide rule—maybe you've never even seen one.
Earlier calculators were nicknamed "four-bangers" since
they handled only four functions: addition, subtraction,
multiplication and division. The HP-35 Scientific Calculator not only performed
complex scientific and mathematical functions, but it was also
the first calculator to use "Reverse Polish Notation" for
programming efficiency.
Special processes and devices involved in the project,
which were new and high risk at the time, included LEDs
(light-emitting-diodes) and MOS (metal-oxide-semiconductor)
ICs (integrated circuits).
Some of the thousands of the HP-35 Scientific Calculators sold were involved
in explorations and adventures. One was carried high upon the
rugged slopes of Mt. Everest; one survived a trip through a
snow-blower in freezing temperatures; others helped navigate
ships. Some have been used by astronauts aboard spacecraft to
calculate the exact angle of re-entry into the Earth's
atmosphere.
Successors to the HP-35 Scientific Calculator include the world's first
pocket-sized business calculator (HP-80 in 1973); the first
fully programmable handheld calculator (HP-65 in 1974); the
first handheld with continuous memory (HP-25C in 1976); and
the first calculator that displayed both numbers and letters
(HP 41-C in 1979).
Dave Hicks, an Oregon-based engineer for the Intel
Corporation is such an HP calculator fan, he owns every HP
calculator model ever made. His enthusiasm for HP calculators
has inspired him to create an online "museum" for HP
calculators.
In addition to detailed information about HP
calculators, the site has historical information about
calculating machines and slide rules, FAQs, classified ads and
information on resources of interest to calculator owners.
HP continues to be first to market
with innovative calculator
products that allow increasingly greater speed, accuracy and complexity
in problem-solving ability, leading the way in calculators for business,
finance, science and graphics.
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