Sharp EL-W516B Scientific Calculator with WriteView (Black)

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5 Reviews

1. I bought the Sharp EL-W516B to replace my 30 year old Sharp EL-5100 because the display was turning black. I don’t recall what I paid for the 5100 but I believe it was around $60.00. I have been trying to improve my algebra skills and the W516B is by far more powerful than the 5100 and at less than 1/3 the price. If you ever out grow and replace it, it will make a fantastic general use calculator for every day use.

2. Sharp EL-W516B Scientific Calculator with WriteView (Black)Let’s suppose you are a bit mental from time to time. Let’s suppose further that you spend your day doing fairly abstract math and it makes you a bit crazy. Let’s even suppose that without some kind of medication you would be in the looney bin.

   Then this is NOT the calculator for you. It will drive you completely crazy in 1.5 hours or, as the EL-W516 likes to say: 1 1/2 hours. The upside is that you can throw the medication out the window since you will be well beyond any therapeutic help from drug therapy (or any other therapy for that matter). You will save on drug costs but lose your sanity.

   Scientific calculators are a dime a dozen. Everyone and his maternal parent makes one: HP, Sharp, Casio, and TI being the big guns. Over the years I have used them all. Recently, I have a bunch of Sharp 531s laying around and needed two more – so I bought a couple of 516s which appeared to be an upgraded version of the former.

   The 516 has a standard feature set for scientific calculator.

   However, the “engineers” at Sharp decided to make a calculator for carpenters and call it a scientific calculator. What idiot at Sharp decided to make fractional display the default display? Sharp, take heed: it is a SCIENTIFIC calculator. When was the last time anyone on planet earth – who uses calculators for science related math – wanted or needed to display results in fractions? Even if, as a feature, Sharp wanted to add the ability to display fractions – one would think – at the very least – they would offer it as an optional default setting. But to force you to hit the CHANGE key to display in SCI notation – after you have selected SCI in Set Up – is beyond nuts. In other words, even though you enter the calculation in SCI notation, the calculator displays the result in fractions!!!! – begging the question: what is the point of selecting SCI in the first place. Is that perverse or what? The universal rule is this: if data entry is in SCI notation, then the results should be in SCI notation; that is – data entry and results always MATCH. Anything other than this should be an OPTIONAL setting.

   It would be my guess that no one since the dawn of scientific calculators back in the TI SR series days ever said to him or herself: I am raising the number 45 to the 3rd power and dividing by 7 and this damn calculator is giving me the answer as 1.30178571e03. I really need to see it as 13017 6/7.

   In terms of ergonomics, this is the calculator from Hell.

3. So, I forgot my Casio calculator at home, and waiting for me at school was the mid-term. I drove right to a brick and mortar store and ran in to find that they have many calculators to chose from, just calling me, wanting to come home with me. I could’ve picked up the same Casio I had at home, but I didn’t. I thought I try a new calculator so I picked up this Sharp EL-W516. Boy, it’s been good to me so far. I’ve used it for two classes already and I don’t feel a need to buy a fancy graphing calculator just yet. Yes, it doesn’t do graphing, but that’s fine. At this price, it’s a steal; especially for a poor college student.

4. I am a graduate student of Mechanical Engineering and when i bought this calculator I was not sure if its going to meet all my requirements…After using for few months now, I am glad that i bought it.

5. The ability to enter the problem just as it appears is great for learning. Anyone who needs a scientific calculator should definitely give this one a look.