DATAMATH CALCULATOR MUSEUM

Texas Instruments TI-5050

Date of introduction:	March 1975	Display technology:
New price:	$199.95, DM 748.00	Display size:	n.a.
Size:	8.6" x 3.9" x 2.5" 218 x 98 x 63 mm³	Printer technology:	Thermal TP-20225
Weight:	28.2 ounces, 802 grams	Serial No:	71809
Batteries:	6*AA NiCd	Date of manufacture:	wk 43 year 1975
AC-Adapter:	AC9170	Origin of manufacture:	USA
Precision:	10	Integrated circuits:	TMC1014, TMS1214
Memories:
Program steps:		Courtesy of:	Joerg Woerner
		Download manual:	(US: 2.3M Bytes)

Yes, this calculator is called the first handheld printing calculator by Texas Instruments. There are great differenced between the first calculator based on TI's thermal printer technology - the Canon Pocketronic - and the TI-5050. The first one used a serial printing method, writing one digit after the other, this one writes the results in a parallel manner.

The TI-5050 uses internal NiCd batteries to support the printing head with enough power. With the external charger alone you can't get the calculator to work.

Dismantling this TI-5050 manufactured in October 1975 by Texas Instruments in the USA reveals a designed centered around two members of the famous TMS1000 Microcomputer family. The first chip labeled TMC1014 is manufactured in PMOS (p-channel metal-oxide-semiconductor) technology similar to the original Canon Pocketronic and features 1k*8 Bits ROM plus 64*4 bits RAM in a 28-pin DIP (Dual In-line Package) housing while the second chip labeled TMS1214 adds to identical specifications two extra Output lines in a 40-pin DIP housing.

The TI-5050 was replaced soon with the TI-5050M sporting an additional memory and cutting the chip count into half. Interesting to learn that the TI-5050M uses different algorithm for basic math functions, a simple division of [2] [÷] [3] returns 0.666666667 instead 0.666666666.

The first really handheld printing calculator was introduced two years later with the TI-5025.

Don't miss the first printing desktop calculator, the TI-500 introduced already in 1974.

The TI-5050 is featured in the Texas Instruments Deutschland GmbH leaflets ER-1975 and ER-1976 dated 1975 resp. 1976.

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