12 Most Expensive Calculators in the World 2023
Nikole Stewart
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Calculators are exceptionally accessible anymore. Every touch screen that we own has one, even our watches. Doing simple or intense math is not what it used to be back in the day, and that’s a relief. But today, we’re going to look at the most expensive calculators, and not the ones that you have on your phone.
Whether it’s the scientific or graph calculators you have during your college days, or the intense, intricate crafts of calculators dating back to the 1800s, these are the most expensive calculators that you can either buy yourself today or find in museums.
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What Is the Most Expensive Calculator?
What are some of the most expensive calculators? And why are they so expensive?
There are several calculators that we can list from ones that you can purchase today to help with your schoolwork, to historical pieces that have made history, yet these are the top selections and are a mixture of each category.
12. SciPlus-3500 Large Display Graphing Scientific Calculator, $699
For our first entry at most expensive calculators, let’s look at SciPlus-3500 Large Display Graphing Calculator with speech output sitting right under $700. This calculator can be purchased at School Health currently and features a high resolution, 7″ four-line color display and selectable foreground and background colors for those that want a pop to see better.
It supports four number formats from standard, fixed notation, scientific notation and engineering notation. There is an auto shut off that saves current settings, and a long-life rechargeable battery, yet still lightweight.
11. Louis Vuitton Monogram Pocket Calculate, $1,265
1st Dibs has a Louis Vuitton Monogram Pocket Calculator up for auction, with it then selling for over $1,000. Louis Vuitton is one of the most well-known luxury brands out there, most known for their handbags, crossbody bags, leather gods, ready-to-wear clothing and more.
They also have a hand in jewelry and furniture. This vintage expensive calculator is a unique piece for collectors and was surely a great find and grab for the buyer. With very little wear and tear, this was a great deal.
10. Hewlett Packard Watch, $1,700
Hewlett Packard, or HP, is one of the most common brands that you can see in homes. The multinational information technology company develops and provides a wide variety of hardware components, as well as software and related services to consumers, small and medium sized-businesses and large enterprises. From calculators to computers, cameras to printers, HP is a very well-known brand.
That being said, there are several HP products within the most expensive calculators that collectors might want, such as this stainless steel and yellow gold digital electronic wristwatch with a calculator, alarm clock, stopwatch, timer and calendar. Sotheby’s had an auction for this product, and it was sold for almost $1,800.
9. Sui President Series Calculator, $1,740
This sleek product is an exquisite office tool that will enhance any space that you use it in. Sui is a series of deluxe aluminum office equipment crafted out of sophisticated metals, created with modern design and traditional Japanese approaches.
Every calculator is made to order, which is one of the many reasons why these are some of the most expensive calculators. Sitting at $1,40, this is an ideal product for those that want to enhance their workspace without dedicating too much of their savings.
8. Amdsoc Germany Early Last Century Hand Crank Calculator, $2,889.99
This product is surprisingly on Amazon currently, with a heavy price of $2,889.99. This is a 1900s German antique. The hand-cranked calculator is an incredibly accurate when doing addition, subtraction, multiplication and division, and is a wonderful item for collectors or for those that want a statement piece in their office or workspace.
You can purchase this now along with its original box and winding key. It’s free of rust, however, due to his date, there is some wear and tear, but that only adds to the story behind it.
7. Pascal’s Calculator, $16,325
This calculator was invented in 1642 by Blaise Pascal and went through 50 prototypes until it was publicly presented in 1645. Pascal invented this to help his father calculate taxes more efficiently. Young Pascal presented a prototype to the Chancellor of France, and later received a patent, or privilege as it was called then.
Soon, the Pascaline was well-known in France and abroad. This hard-to-find calculator has a replica recently sold at Bonhams in November 2020 for over $16,000. As of now, it’s believed that there were only 20 ever produced, with only 9 known to exist.
6. Kenny Scharf Calculator, $20,160
This wacky looking calculator was only estimated at $3,000 to $5,000, however, it exceeded that price substantially and sold for over $20,000. The reason behind this price is because of its colorful and eye-catching decoration.
Keith Haring hand-painted the calculator with acrylic and costume jewels mounted to the plastic calculator with an electric cord. Haring met with Kenny Scharf, and they both became fast friends with their shared loved of graffiti, pop art and cartoon culture. This is just one item of many that was show at their many exhibits showcasing their artwork.
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5. Deakin and Francis’ 18ct Luxury Gold Calculator, $26,720
Of course, when we talk about most expensive of anything, there’s always going to be one entry where something is pure gold. And for the most expensive calculators, that’s surprisingly still true. Deakin and Francis is one of the many brands that have worked to create luxurious items.
Since 1786, the company has created some of the finest cufflinks along with several other luxurious accessories, this calculator being one of them. Deakin and Francis describe this item a perfect and extravagant gift for someone “who has everything”.
This calculator is fully functional and made completely from 18ct gold and is a unique and perfect item for those that want a one-of-a-kind item that truly matches their personality. This is a great gift for those that want their home office to look a bit more luxurious.
4. Texas Instruments Cal-Tech Prototype Handheld Calculator, $68,825
Texas Instruments, or TI, is a very popular brand amongst calculators. The technology company designs and manufactures semiconductors and various integrated circuits, which it sells to electronic designers and manufacturers globally.
TI invented the hand-held calculator in 1967, with this item being the prototype that was sold November 2020 for over $68,000 at Bonhams. This is an 18-button keypad including the zero bar, which doesn’t even compare to today’s common graphing calculator with over 30-buttons.
3. Grillet Portable Calculator, $155,000
A historical calculator that is pretty pricey is the Grillet portable calculator that was auctioned for $155,000 in 2013. This calculator was crafted by Frenchman Rene Grillet de Roven, who produced this 14×32-centimetre wooden machine around 1673.
The estimated price for this auctioned piece was around $100,000, which it exceeded, and rightfully so as it’s one of four known examples of this design, and the only one in private hands. The auction was held at Christie’s Travel, Science and Natural History on October 10, 2013, in London.
Grillet was a watchmaker and mechanicians to French king Louis XIV and often displayed his machines at fairs in the Netherlands and Paris throughout 1670 and 1680s, which made several collectors want to get ahold of this piece, making it one of the most expensive calculators in the world.
2. Thomas de Colmar’s 1848 Arithmometer, $202,730
The arithmometer was the first digital mechanical calculator that was strong enough and reliable enough to be used daily in an office setting. It added and subtracted two numbers directly and couple perform long multiplications and divisions effectively by using a movable accumulator for the result.
Thomas de Colmar patented this invention in France in 1820 and manufactured it from 1851 to 1915 and was the first successful mechanical calculator commercially.
Christie’s had an auction for the 1848 arithmometer by Thomas de Colmar that has five input slides and corresponding reminder dials, ten result digits with ivory hand control knobs and brass bedplate. It had an estimated value between $121,750 to $182,625 but reached a sale price of over $202,000. Sotheby’s also had an auction for one that only ended up being worth $11,875, and is the picture shown above.
1. German 19th-Century Brass Calculator, $11.8 Million
A New York Times article in 1003 wrote about the German 19th Century Brass Calculator, “a gilded and lacquered precursor of today’s computers” that recently sold for over $11 million to a Swiss dealer in clocks and watches at Christie’s in London, taking our number one spot as most expensive calculator.
It was a record number at the auction for any scientific instrument and the third-highest paid for any item at an art-auction. The calculator was originally called a rechnungs Maschine, and it caused quite the sensation at the auction, according to Dermot Chichester, the auctioneer and managing director of Christie’s in London.
He mentioned that it was one of the most exciting auctions he conducted since the presale estimate was only $30,600. The buy, Edgar Abraham Mannheimer, is a Czechoslovak-born dealer and Holocaust survivor who had spent World War II in Auschwitz and knew just how unique the piece was when he saw it in the catalogue.
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What Was the First Calculator and Where Was It Made?
While the first known tools used to aid in arithmetic were bones for tallying items, or pebbled, counting boards or abacus, the first was seen during the Renaissance with the first mechanical calculator by Wilhelm Schickard in 1623, and then later by Blaise Pascal in 1642, which is mentioned above.
However, the fist handheld calculator was a 1967 prototype called Cal Tech, whose development was led by Jack Kilby at Texas Instruments in a research project to produce a portable calculator, which was mentioned above and valued at around $68,000.
What Is the Rarest Calculator Ever Made?
The rarest calculator is the Grillet Portable Calculator and is considered one of the first portable mechanical calculators.
It’s extremely rare as there are only four known models in existence today, and most of them are held in museums or private collections, with the most recent sale being in 2013 as listed above.
What Is the Most Expensive Scientific Calculator Ever Made?
The most expensive in general is the German 19th-Century Brass Calculator that was valued at over $11 million.
What is the Most Expensive Scientific Calculator Made by Casio?
The current most expensive calculator made by Casio is the S100x Premium Luxury Calculator for $350. You can find several products by them for more affordable prices at around $15 to $20.
What Is the Most Popular Calculator in the World?
The most popular calculator comes from one of the most popular calculator brands, the Texas Instruments, specifically the TI-84 Plus CE. You can find this calculator on Amazon currently for about $115.
What Is the Best-Selling Calculator of All Time?
Again, Texas Instrument is definitely a brand that can’t be beat. Some of the best calculators that you can find come from them.
And right now, one of the best-selling ones are from them as well, with the TI-30XIIS Scientific Calculator and TI-84 Plus CE being two of the most popular and beloved calculators.
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How Much Did a Calculator Cost in 1973?
The first calculator by HP sold for $395 in 1972, with the first TI calculator selling for $149.95 in the same yar.
In 1973, with the introduction to SR-10 by TI only cost $150. HP and TI were constant competitors when it came to calculators, and they worked hard beating each other’s prices and beating each other’s design.
If you calculate inflation, the first calculator cost about $2,370 today, making for a pricey purchase.
What Is the Most Expensive Calculator You Can Buy in an Everyday Store?
One of the highest priced calculators that you can find right now if you look at places like Walmart include the TI-84 Plus Graphing Calculator, 10-digit LCD for $140.
What Is the Most Expensive Texas Instrument Calculator?
The TI Nspire CX CAS is being sold for around $200, making it the most expensive calculator by TI.
What Is the Most Expensive Graphing Calculator?
Funny enough, the TI Nspire CX CAS is also the most expensive graphing calculator, sitting at around $200.
What Is the Most Powerful Casio Calculator?
If you’re a college student and are ready to take some extensive classes but want a bit of help, check out the Casio PRIZM FX-CG-50-L-IH, one of the best and most powerful graphing calculators for college.
What Is the Most Advanced Calculator?
If you’re looking for the most advanced in general, the HP Prime Graphing Calculator is a great choice due to its ability to perform symbolic calculations, graphing and 3D graphing all in one device.
What is the Most Advanced Graphing Calculator?
The most liked and well-received graphing calculator goes to the TI-84 Plus once again, as it’s an overall amazing choice for those looking for the best one. It’s a sound option and doesn’t falter.
Conclusion
In conclusion, calculators are not just for students dealing with hard topics within mathematics, there are several reasons over the years that people have needed, developed, and grew calculators.
So, when looking at the most expensive calculators, there are several reasons behind the prices, whether it’s because of the historical value, or because of its advanced and unique creation.
If you’re wanting to find great collectibles for your collection, you definitely should opt for a unique calculator. And if you’re looking for a great choice while studying, maybe just opt for a simple TI calculator.
