Sharp PC-E500 Pocket Computer from 1989

This video is about the classic Sharp PC-E500, a hybrid BASIC programmable pocket computer and engineer's calculator from 1989.
In the video I talk about its calculator modes, engineering applications and BASIC programming.
The Sharp PC-E500 supports the following applications:
- Mathematics: Prime Factors, GCM/LCM, Numerical solution (Newton's method), Numerical solution (Bisection method), Numerical integration (Romberg), Numerical integration (Runge-Kutta), Differential (Lagrange), Factorisation, Trig Functions, Integration, Greek Symbols, Graphing (Function), Graphing (Data), Area of Figure, Gamma function
- Science: Physical constants, Metric conversion, Equation of motion, Periodic table, Outer electron, Stable isotopes, Meteorology, Solar/planetary constants, Amino acids formulae
- Engineering: Complex numbers, Electrical formulas, Electric & magnetic fields, Laplace transform, Mechanical formulae.
- Stats: Normal distribution, t Distribution, Chi-square distribution, F distribution
For more calculator videos check out my channel / calculatorculture

[@HPPalmtopTube]

Nice video, I love late 80's and early 90's BASIC pocket computers :)

[@winthropdc1]

I have a Sharp PC-E500 that does not even have a serial number as it is an engineering sample from before its official release. I wrote a space invaders game in basic for it.

[@MattMcIrvin]

My big nostalgia is for Sharp's slightly earlier pocket computers with metal cases, but it's interesting to see what they did after I jumped ship. Pretty amazing to see that the descendants of the AER line and the BASIC/scientific hybrids like the PC-1401 eventually converged. The simple CAL mode feels like a remnant of the PC-1401 line where it was the most convenient way to do straight scientific calculations, and the BASIC mode was a world apart. These Sharps do seem very mode-heavy.

[@normansmith9110]

I would like to know more about this one. I have two PC-6 computers that still work though one has a damaged joint. Later I got a Casio 850P with an expansion chip but the BRK key is not working properly. I figured out how to decode the internal code and how to clear a pass ward on it. My program decoding made it possible to decide use and modify programs in the library. I also had a chemical formula program that enabled me to draw a chemical formula a get the molecular weight and percent composition of the compound. I spent a lot of time on these. I also had some sharp pocket computers. I liked that I could control the size of string array elements in DIM statements. Later I got involved with the HP48 calculators and later the hp49 series. Now I do these on emulators such as Emu48 (free on Android). I also have some of the older go-- emulators by Olevier DeSmet a very good emulator develop out of France. It is well worth buying a seven inch Android just to have these emulators.

[@andreaalbertin8955]

Beautiful video! You reminded me that I have one too ... Could you tell me how do I turn off the sound? Many years have passed and I no longer remember how to do it. Thank you very much

[@CalculatorCulture]

Switch to BASIC mode and then hit CTRL 0 to toggle keyboard beep.

[@andreaalbertin8955]

@@CalculatorCulture Thanks a lot for your reply. Excuse me for my delay....

[@laurenth7187]

And question is, do it have SUB routines you pass an argument), and/or user defined fonctions ? and recursion

[@sasaradivojevic8651]

My E500 is usually blocking, every 2-3 minutes, so I have to restart it each time. Does anyone know what's the issue and how to fix it?

[@gregskuza7166]

Great video! One question: does it have an external power connector?

[@CalculatorCulture]

I dont think so...I can't see a power port on it.

[@gregskuza7166]

@@CalculatorCulture ok, thank you 🙏

[@flatspin5382]

Now today we have casio fx-991es plus

[@CalculatorCulture]

Heh. Yeah it sad the pocket computer form factor died out. Still nothing wrong with the 991, it is a great value calculator for the price!

[@laurenth7187]

But this is not a graphic one, while the PC 850V(s) is....

[@Fire_TaeHoon]

how can i mute this? biff sound off

[@CalculatorCulture]

Switch to BASIC mode and hit Ctrl 0 to toggle the beep

[@zeppottosedano1107]

​@@CalculatorCulture thanks a lot. now I can mute it!!!

[@rideon41]

It’s sad that despite the power of the CPU, the luxury of the display, its software and expansion is still so far behind the HP 71b with its 4-bit CPU…

[@CalculatorCulture]

Yeah I'm hoping to make a video about the 71B soon. It is going to be an interesting one. Even amongst HP collectors many people love it, but many others (including some of the engineers who worked on it) don't care for it at all. It is true it was expansible with its ROM cards and LEX files. It needed to be though, since due to the limitations of the hardware in the early 80s meant by itself it couldn't do much. Later devices had a lot more storage to play with, more functionality built-in and therefore less need for expansibility. I'm looking forward to researching it more. If you want to compare device capability, Marcus Von Cube created an excellent document here: www.mvcsys.de/doc/basic-compare.pdf

[@ravengelen]

The HP-71b is nice. I have both and in some sense these are comparable. The HP-71b is a remarkably complex machine, but also remarkably expensive and unaffordable now and back in the 80s. I found that the HP-71b lacks in memory, speed, screen real estate, has no double precision floats, and has no easy way to switch between "apps" (not to mention it has no graphing program). I'm not compelled by either brand, just looking at it from a usability and technical point of view. I wish the HP-71b ROMs were affordable to make a comparison more succinct. A HP-71b ROM such as the math ROM costs more than the E500 alone.

[@rideon41]

@@ravengelen I get that 71b is pricey, just looking at it from a purely technical perspective. It can address 512K RAM, it has a full file system and HP-IL interface is simple and easy to use, the BASIC on board is fantastic and the way you can extend functionality with LEX files is really well done. The CPU runs at 640KHz and has a 4-bit data bus, so it is quite slow at general operations, however it has 9 64-bit registers and excels with full precision math. Without a doubt the most limiting factor though is the display. One line of 22 chars just gets old… Despite that, it’s my favorite device to play on by far. I have FORTH/Assembler ROM and 192K additional RAM, and Pil-BOX to connect it to a PC via HP-IL.

[@rideon41]

@@CalculatorCulture It’s quite an interesting story - the development of HP-75 and HP-71b. Two different teams, one that shrunk an HP 80 computer, and one that aimed to create an upgrade to the HP-41 series. I admit to being a 71b fan, but have been playing a lot of the G850V that I got from Japan. They are just so different…

[@rhymereason3449]

@@CalculatorCulture Owning one myself, I think the real tragedies of the 71B are 1) No RPN mode for the calculator. 2) HORRIBLY limited display of one line. 3) Only 16K on the base unit. 4) No easy way to save programs without an expensive card reader - and good luck finding memory strips for it now.