The History of Graphing Calculators

The first commercially available graphing calculator, the fx-7000G, was introduced by Casio Computer Company in 1985. It was adopted by Ohio schools the following year and other schools followed suit soon after. In 1987, Hewlett-Packard Corporation introduced its HP-28C calculator, which featured not only graphing but symbolic manipulation as well as limited integration and differentiation. The HP-28C was followed up by the HP-28S, which debuted at the January 1988 centennial meeting of the American Mathematical Society. Additional manufacturers such as Texas Instruments began to offer their own graphing calculators soon after. While many people now use the calculators on their smartphones instead of handheld machines for basic mathematics, graphing calculators can perform many complex, crucial functions and are therefore still used today in schools as well as in many fields of work.