I remember at my high school they specifically kept a stash of the even-back-then-discontinued Ti-86’s that they sold at the school bookstore. These were the ONLY calculators we were allowed to use. I think they ran out eventually and gave up but always found it funny and I still haven’t met folks that used it besides grads from my high school. Anyone else here ever use one?
The TI-86? It's actually a beast of a calculator when it comes to Linear Algebra. It handles complex matricies better than any other TI calculator with the exception of the Nspire CX and CX II. That said, I have never used one either, lending credence to your observation. I have passed up several auctions for them since the TI-8X line of calculators is not one that I actively collect.
It sure could play some surprisingly advanced games lol someone got a fair bit of ALTTP on there if memory serves. Or at least some mainline Zelda game
That machine is in great shape! I had a Casio fx-7700G in high school and always felt like I had one hand tied behind my back when I had to use a TI-82 for tests. They were capable little machines, but I didn't have the muscle memory to use them quickly.