DATAMATH

DATAMATH CALCULATOR MUSEUM

Ativa AT-30SX

Date of introduction:	2008	Display technology:	LCD dot matrix
New price:	$14.95 (SRP 2009)	Display size:	3 * 15 characters
Size:	6.4" x 3.1" x 0.45" 163 x 78 x 12 mm³
Weight:	3.5 ounces, 98 grams	Serial No:
Batteries:	Solar cells + LR44	Date of manufacture:	mth 04 year 2007
AC-Adapter:		Origin of manufacture:	China
Precision:	15	Integrated circuits:
Memories:	7
Program steps:		Courtesy of:	Joerg Woerner

Casio introduced with the fx-115ES already in 2005 an advanced scientific calculator with a 2-line Natural Textbook Display showing formulas and results exactly as they appear in the textbook.

Texas Instruments followed mid-2007 with the TI-30XS MultiView and Sharp joined the group with its EL-W531 series introduced late-2007.

Citizen Systems Japan Co., Ltd. introduced in 2008 with the SR-270X a pretty close clone of the Casio fx-300ES but the calculator seems to be available only in the European market. In the United States an identical product is sold by Office Depot with this Ativa AT-30SX.

In addition to the so called "Math Format" mode the calculator sports a traditional "Linear Format" mode.

Dismantling the Ativa AT-30SX reveals a pretty common construction with a single printed circuit board (PCB). The PCB hides the single-chip calculating circuit under a small protection blob of black epoxy and drives the graphing display with a heat sealed fine-pitch connector. The prominent SR100 designation on the main PCB proves that this calculator was manufactured by Kinpo Electronics, Inc., a famous company located in Taiwan and doing calculator production for well established companies like Texas Instruments, Hewlett Packard, Casio, Canon and Citizen.

Please compare the Ativa AT-30SX with its competitors Casio fx-300ES, Sharp EL-W535 and Texas Instruments TI-30XS MultiView and understand that the Ativa AT-30SX is 99% compatible with Casio fx-300ES!

The remaining 1% are very ambivalent:

• The algorithm of the Ativa AT-30SX sport a higher precision and faster execution time.
• The menu structure and keyboard functionality is identical but the layout of the keys is disturbing.
Please notice for instance the odd grouping of the [sin], [cos] and [tan] keys and the out-of-place [Abs] and [log_ab] keys.
• Both the Ativa AT-30SX and Casio fx-300ES sport a dual power system with solar cells and battery,
but the Ativa doesn’t turn on without battery, even in bright sunlight!

If you have additions to the above article please email: joerg@datamath.org.