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Calculators: Handheld: Canon Palmtronic 8M (aka LD-8M3) (type I)
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| Size (approx): |
77mm
x 142mm x 20mm (w x h x d) |
| Power: | 3.0V DC using 2 x AA size batteries. It accepts an adapter (3V DC 0.4W) through a socket on the top side to the far left. |
| Case: | The case is two-piece mottled black plastic. It is brick shaped with rounded front vertical edges and a full-ridged design on the front top area. A metallic gold and black label bears the make and model number and sits in its own recess. The keyboard surround is shiny brushed aluminium. The neutral display filter is flat, flush and shaped like the case and gives a clean bright image. The springy keys are long travel with a soft click and work very well. |
| Display: | 8 digit blue VFD with a ninth digit for negative, error and memory indicators. |
| Features: | Standard four functions with percentages, square root and four-function memory. |
| Age: | est. 1976 |
| Manufacturer: | Canon Inc., made in Japan. Serial number from the sticker on the inside of the battery cover is 450885. |
| Comments: | Nice feeling quality calculator with a design that covered quite a few models. This Type I is easily recognized by the ten ridges above the display but is otherwise very similar to the case of the Type II. The logic is OK with an odd recovery system but let down by negative square roots and input overflow. The original case if soft black plastic, open top with front and rear cut outs. It is embossed Canon on the front and Japan on the back, but looks a little too small. |
| Components: | 1 x cpu; NEC µPD946C R66246, 28
pin DIL, 0.6" width 1 x 9 digit VFD unit, single glass tube flat faced: Futuba 9-ST-20 6G (suspect this is July 1976) 2 x transistors 5 x diodes 6 x capacitors 3 x resistors 2 x resistor arrays 1 x transformer; TDK CT-1012 |
| Boards: | The main cpu board (EH1-0018-02 Canon Inc) sits loose on top of the keyboard assembly. The keyboard is joined by 20 strong copper wires and fixed to the front with one screw. |
| Construction: | Quite difficult to open - try using a finger nail to pop one of the sides, gently squeezing in the back. Then pop the other side and carefully hinge off the rear from the top. If in doubt - don't force it. |
| Logic comments: | The (CI) key is used to cancel an entry whilst the (C) clears the whole calculator |
| Input overflow is not suppressed inputting an ninth digit causes an overflow error, which is recoverable (by dividing by 10) if it is your first input number but is recoverable using (CI) if it is your subsequent input number. Interestingly enough the 17th input digit causes the display to read zero (with the error flag) and this is not recoverable. | |
| Negative numbers are shown with a "-” in the far left (ninth) digit thereby allowing full eight digit negative numbers. | |
| There is automatic constant on all four functions | |
| Divide by zero shows zero and “C” in the far left (ninth) digit and is not recoverable | |
| Overflow shows the result and “C” (or “E” if negative) in the far left (ninth) digit and is recoverable by dividing 10 (or any multiple) | |
| Negative square roots are allowed and result in a negative number | |
| There is indication of memory store by a the decimal point of the far left (ninth) digit |
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