The Sharp PC-E500S was a 1995

pocket computer A pocket computer is a class of handheld computer characterized by very short displays (typically accommodating only one or a handful of lines of text) and calculator-style alphanumeric keypads. Pocket computers occupy a small footprint, allowin ...

Sharp Corporation is a Japanese electronics company. It is headquartered in Sakai, Osaka, and was founded by Tokuji Hayakawa in 1912 in Honjo, Tokyo, and established as the Hayakawa Metal Works Institute in Abeno-ku, Osaka, in 1924. Since 2016, it is majority o ...

and was the successor to the 1989 PC-E500 model, featuring a 2.304

MHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), often described as being equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose formal expression in terms of SI base u ...

CMOS Complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor (CMOS, pronounced "sea-moss ", , ) is a type of MOSFET, metal–oxide–semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET) semiconductor device fabrication, fabrication process that uses complementary an ...

CPU A central processing unit (CPU), also called a central processor, main processor, or just processor, is the primary processor in a given computer. Its electronic circuitry executes instructions of a computer program, such as arithmetic, log ...

Description

It was slightly wider, and the keys are slightly larger than the previous model. The display had more contrast, and the keyboard cover is a (removable) hinged lid (clamshell) instead of plastic slipcase. There were also four additional BASIC commands (Multiline IF ... ENDIF, WHILE ... WEND, REPEAT ... UNTIL, SWITCH ... CASE ... ENDSWITCH) It came with 32 KB of

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which could be upgraded to 96 KB using memory expansion cards. The monochrome

LCD A liquid-crystal display (LCD) is a flat-panel display or other electronically modulated optical device that uses the light-modulating properties of liquid crystals combined with polarizers to display information. Liquid crystals do not em ...

had 240×32

pixels In digital imaging, a pixel (abbreviated px), pel, or picture element is the smallest addressable element in a raster image, or the smallest addressable element in a dot matrix display device. In most digital display devices, pixels are the sma ...

which could display four lines with 40 characters per line as well as graphics. The 256 KB system

ROM Rom, or ROM may refer to: Biomechanics and medicine * Risk of mortality, a medical classification to estimate the likelihood of death for a patient * Rupture of membranes, a term used during pregnancy to describe a rupture of the amniotic sac * ...

that contained the

BIOS In computing, BIOS (, ; Basic Input/Output System, also known as the System BIOS, ROM BIOS, BIOS ROM or PC BIOS) is a type of firmware used to provide runtime services for operating systems and programs and to perform hardware initialization d ...

, a diagnostic suite, and the

BASIC Basic or BASIC may refer to: Science and technology * BASIC, a computer programming language * Basic (chemistry), having the properties of a base * Basic access authentication, in HTTP Entertainment * Basic (film), ''Basic'' (film), a 2003 film ...

interpreter Interpreting is translation from a spoken or signed language into another language, usually in real time to facilitate live communication. It is distinguished from the translation of a written text, which can be more deliberative and make use o ...

used to program the device. An algebraic calculation system was included. The Algebraic Expression Reserve (AER) memory: Frequently used formulas or constants could be stored in memory and recalled for repeated use. The PC-E500 series also performed as a scientific calculator when switched into 'CAL' mode. It also included an X<>Y exchange key for working with complex numbers and polar to rectangular conversions.

Applications

Mathematics Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many ar ...

(

integer An integer is the number zero (0), a positive natural number (1, 2, 3, ...), or the negation of a positive natural number (−1, −2, −3, ...). The negations or additive inverses of the positive natural numbers are referred to as negative in ...

equation In mathematics, an equation is a mathematical formula that expresses the equality of two expressions, by connecting them with the equals sign . The word ''equation'' and its cognates in other languages may have subtly different meanings; for ...

s, differential & integral

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s and

graphs Graph may refer to: Mathematics *Graph (discrete mathematics), a structure made of vertices and edges **Graph theory, the study of such graphs and their properties * Graph (topology), a topological space resembling a graph in the sense of discre ...

) *

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Chemistry Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a physical science within the natural sciences that studies the chemical elements that make up matter and chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules a ...

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In addition things like

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s and the

periodic table of elements The periodic table, also known as the periodic table of the elements, is an ordered arrangement of the chemical elements into rows (" periods") and columns (" groups"). It is an icon of chemistry and is widely used in physics and other sc ...

were available. These built-in programs were accessed through a menu system and special function keys. There was also a built-in menu editor to add new software to the menus or indeed replace some built-in software or formulas.

Operating modes

* BASIC (programming and execution) * CAL (scientific calculator) * MATRIX (matrices calculations) * STAT (statistics) * ENG (engineering) * AER (algebraic expressions editor). This mode can be accessed from the ''second'' main menu page (press up/down arrow near the lower left display corner).

Accuracy

* 10 digits (mantissa) + 2 digits (exponent) in single-precision mode. * 20 digits (mantissa) + 2 digits (exponent) in double-precision mode. * In the CAL, MATRIX and STAT modes, only the single precision mode can be used.

Memory expansion

The Sharp PC-E500 series could store data and programs on memory expansion cards as well as the main RAM. Six cards were available: * CE-210M: 2 KB * CE-211M: 4 KB * CE-212M: 8 KB * CE-2H16M: 16 KB * CE-2H32M: 32 KB * CE-2H64M: 64 KB These cards used a CR1616 lithium battery for memory backup. The memory configuration was software-switchable from the command-line. The RAM card could be appended to the system memory, replace the system memory or act as a separate space to be used as a RAM drive (F:). The main memory could also be partitioned off to a RAM drive (E:).

Peripherals

* : Thermal printer & cassette interface. * CE-140F: 2.5-inch pocket floppy drive. * CE-130T:

RS-232 In telecommunications, RS-232 or Recommended Standard 232 is a standard introduced in 1960 for serial communication transmission of data. It formally defines signals connecting between a ''DTE'' (''data terminal equipment'') such as a compu ...

adaptor level converter. * CE-135T: RS-232 adaptor level converter. (Macintosh) * CE-515: 4-color X/Y plotter printer The PC-E500S had a weight of 340 g (with batteries) and was powered by four

AAA batteries The AAA battery (or triple-A battery) is a standard size of dry cell battery. One or more AAA batteries are commonly used in low-drain portable electronic devices. A zinc–carbon battery in this size is designated by IEC as R03, by ANSI C1 ...

. It could, given its power consumption of 0.09 W, be used for about 70 hours on a charge.

Variants

* PC-E500 (English): 32 KB, engineer software, double precision, slipcase, rubber keys, black, 1988/1989 * PC-E500 (Japanese): 32 KB, engineer software, double precision,

Kanji are logographic Chinese characters, adapted from Chinese family of scripts, Chinese script, used in the writing of Japanese language, Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese and are ...

, slipcase, rubber keys, black, 1988 * PC-E500PJ / PC-E500-BL (Japanese): 32 KB, engineer software, game "HEAVY METAL mini" (by CRISIS Software) preloaded into RAM, double precision, Kanji, slipcase, rubber keys, blue, 1990, limited special edition by Pokecom Journal (PJ) * PC-E500S (English): 32 KB, engineer software, double precision, high contrast display, clamshell, plastic keys, black, 1995 * PC-E550 (Japanese): 64 KB, engineer software, double precision, Kanji, slipcase, rubber keys, white, 1990 * PC-E650 (Japanese): 64 KB, engineer software, double precision, structured BASIC, Kanji, clamshell, plastic keys, black, 1993 * PC-1480U (Japanese): 32 KB, no engineer software, "coop uni" label, double precision, Kanji, slipcase, rubber keys, black, 1988 * PC-1490U (Japanese): 32 KB, no engineer software, "coop uni" label, double precision, Kanji, slipcase, rubber keys, black, 1990 * PC-1490UII (Japanese): 64 KB, no engineer software, "UNIV. TOOL" label, double precision, Kanji, slipcase, rubber keys?, black, 1991 * PC-U6000 (Japanese): 64 KB, no engineer software, "UNIV. TOOL" label, double precision, Kanji, clamshell, plastic keys, black, 1993 (NB
University Co-operative

References

* *

External links

* —demo of a Japanese PC-E500 {{DEFAULTSORT:Sharp Pc-E500s PC-E500S PC-E500S