Shoddy build quality, expensive, has the features, shoddy build quality

I had specific requirements; I needed a Grand Total in addition to regular memory, and a fast 2-color printer. Specifications of most calculators fell short in one or more areas, but this one seemed to fit the bill, so I paid for this expensive calculator.

I was most disappointed when I found if I tried to go as fast as I'm used to, invariably at least one digit would be dropped on one of the items on a tape of a couple dozen. This seems to be because of the combination of fairly large travel when the key is pressed, and a sloppy fit which tends to make a key "bind" on the way down, so it may never make it all the way down. I had to "relearn" to use the keypad much more slowly than I was used to. Kind of defeats some of the purpose of getting a calculator with a fast printer.

The other thing is that after several months of use I found it tended to unexpectedly spit out the red line of dots starting with "P" that it does when you move the Power switch to the printing position. Sometimes it will get going sporadically and spit out dozens of them at an uneven rate. Also, when that problem first began, after that you couldn't turn the calculator off! You could move the power switch to the off position, but the display would still be lit. I took it apart and didn't see anything wrong with the switch, which was the kind with printed contacts rather than metal contacts, where half the switch is printed on the circuit card and the other half is sandwiched in plastic sheets with cutouts - like most PC keyboards now. This is probably cheaper, but the contacts invariably are less reliable over their life, and their life is much shorter than the old "standalone" kind, which only cost about a buck (though I guess there's some additional assembly/soldering costs - still, I think it would be worth it). Cleaning the contacts with alcohol cured the switch problem (for now, at least).