TI-84 Plus best price?

[Dashzap]

School supply shopping time!

Anyone see a good price for the TI-84 Plus?

Amazon has it for $106.84

 

[maggiew]

I bought mine last year from Office Depot. I used a coupon for $20 off of $100. Keep an eye out for online Office Depot coupons. They offer free shipping for orders over $50. If you google "office depot coupon code" they always have some available. Look at wording on coupon to make sure it doesn't exclude a calculator, though.

Maggie

 

[MichelleinMaine]

When I got DS's last year, Staples had a % off coupon for calculators (and a rebate, I think) but Walmart had it straight up for $85. Watch your flyers- it will go on sale in various places. I think it was mid-late July.

 

[Dashzap]

I'll be careful not to jump too quickly then.

Thanks.

 

[elgerber]

I'll be careful not to jump too quickly then.

Thanks.

Yes, as soon as the back to school sales start, they will come down. But only for a short time, so pay attention to all the flyers when they come out.

 

[clh2]

We got DD her calculator from e-bay. Granted -this was 4 years ago - the one she got had a "defective color". Works perfectly fine...It hink we paid around $70 or $75 including shipping. Had all the cables,, directions etc.

 

[SandrA9810]

Ebay seems to be going for 50-75, including new ones. I'd expect them to go up in price as closer it gets to school starting, and then of course stores putting them on sale.

 

[DisFanEY]

Hey, so long as you don't need TI necessarily, the Casio Prizm is the way to go-- got one for my DD, full color and only $99. So cool. If that's too steep, they make a comparable one to the 84 for only $50. The TI's are too expensive IMO.

 

[lisa-upnorth]

bought my daughter last year on ebay and think paid less than $50 and it is perfect

 

[turtlegirl25]

I am a math teacher and would wait to see what the teacher recommends. If the curriculum is designed around a TI-84 then get that calculator. Purchasing a different brand will be confusing for your student because many textbooks/teachers demonstrate on one particular calculator.

I encourage my students (who have ipods or smart phones) to download a graphing calculator app if they don't want to spend another $125 on a calculator. I teach Algebra and Geometry so a downloaded app is fine for these courses. (Double check because some school do not allow them to use ipods for regular school work. Our students can for homework but not tests.)

Just my opinion.

 

[Dashzap]

In our district the kids are required to get a specific calculator, in this case, the TI-84plus.

 

[FlyingDumbo]

Be sure to ask around with friends and family or do a facebook post. I feel like a lot of people have these laying around after they are finished using them. Just gave mine to a neighbor last week.

I wonder if maybe anyone who took this class last year might sell it to you? Just a thought since they made us all buy em and then after that class a lot of people had no more use for them.

 

[DisFanEY]

I guess this is why I posted...with budgets as tight as they are nowadays, the fact that teachers can't accommodate more than one kind of calculator is ridiculous, especially when one brand is SOOOO much more expensive than another. A PP mentioned that a teacher must use only one because of textbook compatibility, but in this day and age, that seems a bit antiquated. My DD's teacher uses supplements and allows any calculator.

 

[MrsPete]

I guess this is why I posted...with budgets as tight as they are nowadays, the fact that teachers can't accommodate more than one kind of calculator is ridiculous, especially when one brand is SOOOO much more expensive than another. A PP mentioned that a teacher must use only one because of textbook compatibility, but in this day and age, that seems a bit antiquated. My DD's teacher uses supplements and allows any calculator.

It isn't that the teacher can't accomodate different brands -- it's that it's easier for the student to have the same one the teacher has. Math teachers have a "hook up" -- for lack of a better word -- that allows them to project their calculator from their overhead projectors onto a wall/screen, and THE CALCULATOR that everyone seems to have today is the TI-84 Silver Edition Plus. Students with other calculators will be able to do the work, but they'll have to translate what the teacher's doing to their own calculator. My oldest would have no problem with this, but my math-challenged youngest needs all the help she can get.

When my oldest started high school I asked a math teacher what I should get her. I told her that I didn't mind paying $$$$$ for a calculator, but I wanted it TO LAST. I didn't want to "cheap out" and pay only $$ today, then find out that she'd need the $$$$$ version as a senior anyway. Her math teacher assured me that the TI-84 Silver Edition Plus is the best for high school and college. She told me that if I bought that, I likely would never have to buy another calculator for my student.

When I bought my oldest girl's calculator, this version was brand-new. No such thing as getting it used. I watched and watched, and finally I did a price match from an Office Max flyer to Staples, AND I used a $20 off a $100 purchase coupon, and I ended up getting it for something like $90. Given that it was a brand-new item, I was satisfied that I'd done the best I could.

My youngest is about to start high school, and I was determined to win her one from ebay . . . but I kept losing the auctions. That turned out to be a good thing though because another teacher GAVE ME one. She had several that she'd found in the process of cleaning out her room/ her lockers (she actually had THREE from which I could choose), and since this was AFTER graduation, I had no qualms about accepting it. Once I popped in new batteries, it worked fine. It's amazing what things students lose and don't bother to look for.

 

[rock_doctor]

Texas instruments supplies a lot of materials for teachers and in most cases instructions to use the calculators are included in the text books. I would contact the teacher and see if they are going to make them available for purchase though the school. My district requires them like the others but the kids can buy them directly from the teacher (she places an order for the class, the district makes a single bulk purchase) at a reduced cost. I don't know how much they cost the kids, i am science not math... I would wait though... If money is a serious issue i would contact the school about a free or seriously reduced cost... Unless it is a private school i don't see how they can make this a must do requirement. Keep an eye out for the silicon bumper/cover they are very hot right now with the kids.... good luck.

 

[elgerber]

They are expensive, but the TI-84+ will last forever!! My son just graduated high school, I bought his TI in the 6th grade. It's still going strong, so if you divide the price out per year, it's not so bad.

 

[SandrA9810]

You probably will not have to upgrade after this purchase, all the way through college. Unless they're going into very high math courses, which might require a TI-89. Some of those higher models are so advanced, like a mini computer, that they're banned from regular math courses. They've gone far beyond just playing Tetris on them these days.

 

[BSil]

If your child has an ipod or ipad there is a cheap or free app called pi-83 or pi-84, which basically emulates the TI graphing calculators. Maybe there is an app similar for android phones as well. I'd look into that if it does virtually the same things.

 

[Dashzap]

I'll spring for full price if I have to, but I'll get him the calculator the school requests. He's going into 7th grade, and I think this calculator will see him all the way through Calc III.

Ipads and e-readers are frowned upon at school, unless you have a special need. (My older son carries an ipad b/c he has a nonfunctional hand.)

 

[DawnM]

I got one for $1 at a yard sale. The person had used it all through high school and was finished with it. It had scratches and was well "loved" but it works perfectly!

See if you can find a used one.