DATAMATH

DATAMATH CALCULATOR MUSEUM

Texas Instruments TI-108

Date of introduction:	2014	Display technology:	LCD
New price:	$7.95 (SRP 2017)	Display size:	8
Size:	4.3" x 2.5" x 0.40" 110 x 64 x 10 mm³
Weight:	1.5 ounces, 44 grams	Serial No:
Batteries:	LR1130	Date of manufacture:	mth 07 year 2014
AC-Adapter:		Origin of manufacture:	China (K)
Precision:	8	Integrated circuits:
Memories:	1
Program steps:		Courtesy of:	Joerg Woerner

It was quite a surprise when we learned in July 2017 from Michael MacEachern that he just acquired a TI-108 manufactured in March 2017. He noticed some interesting differences compared to the four TI-108 versions we had as of July 2017 exhibited in the Datamath Calculator Museum:

• Missing gray bezel for the display frame.
• Larger numbers on the LC Display.
• Internal backup battery.
• TI logo printed in white.

Trying to fill the voids we screened many eBay Auctions in the following months and discovered in addition to this design introduced in or around 2014, a TI-108 manufactured in August 2008 and a TI-108 manufactured in February 2016. Please find a detailed overview of the different hardware versions of the TI-108 calculators between 1988 and 2016 here.

Dismantling this TI-108 manufactured in July 2014 by Kinpo Electronics in China reveals a pretty simple internal construction from the Nineties. The unknown single-chip calculator circuit of this TI-108 is mounted in Chip-on-Board) COB) technology on a double-sided printed circuit board (PCB) and hidden under a small epoxy blob.

Inspecting the PCB of this TI-108 calculator brought our attention to a small mark reading 138-10-2, we noticed a similar mark already with the second generation of the TI-1795SV introduced in 2003. We started compiling a list of the PCB-Marks on calculators manufactured by OEMs for Texas Instruments.

Production of the TI-108 was shifted in or around 2016 to the Philippines.

Stokes Publishing Company, Inc. based in Sunnyvale, California sold a companion for the teacher, view the Basic.

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