TI BA II vs 12C

I use the HP 12C calculator and love it (been using it for years). Agree with @justinturner on just about everything above, and I heard somewhere that using the sequence of steps in the 12C for a given calculation, the number of needed keystrokes is always the same or less than for a more “normal” calculator.

As far as I’m aware, BA II is newer than the 12C and has a faster processor. I see more BA II calculators than the 12C in the London exam centre.

Our consensus is that: If you know/like reverse polish notation, use HP12C. Otherwise, BAII Plus.

BA II Plus is definitely the more popular one. It’s also supported by Schweser in their notes so no surprises there. 🙂

Hope the exam went well!!!

HP12C is more powerful and better built (powerful is subjective, better built is obvious). BA II is extremely cheap, like $1 in materials cheap. Also, if you type two numbers relatively fast, only one pops up, you always need to type slow and double check everything. None of the HP calculators have this issue. They are superior quality and feel great to use. They are also more expensive. People use BA II (including myself!) cause it is cheaper, and has a less steep learning curve (12C is hard to wrap your head around). HP has a BA II-esque calculator (10bII) and imo it is the best financial calculator out there (easiest to use, great quality) but for some reason CFA institute does not allow it. I would have used the 10bII if it was allowed, but my next best option was BA II for the reasons mentioned above.