basically give you exact answers to almost any kind of mathematical function. Of course, it does not show the work, so if you are taking a class, you still have to learn how to do the problems, but it is helpful for checking your work. The display is much, much better than the display on the TI-89. It does utilize the same kind of "stack" but it is much brighter and easier to see. And some things, like derivatives, integrals, and matrices are much easier to set up on the Nspire than they are on the TI-89. Another good feature is that you can have multiple windows open and go back and forth between them. Probably not something you would need for an exam (assuming your teacher allows you to use it), but it can be helpful when doing homework. Many teachers will not let you because this can also store PDF files (if you use the computer software that comes with it) so you could take a cheat sheet into an exam that is closed book, closed notes.
There are a few issues that I discovered along the way. The menus can be a pain in the butt to navigate unless you are using one of the common math functions. For example, the statistics material is hard to find and access. Second, you pretty much have to go to YouTube to figure out how to do things on it because it does not come with a manual that helps at all. And, doing some things like changing from Radian to Degree mode that is relatively easy on TI's other calculators like the 84 plus, and the 89, is tricky on the Nspire. Also, there is a very deceptive mode that is on one of the settings screens that says something like "press to test". At first glance, it looks like it would run some kind of diagnostic on the calculator, but what it really does is put the calculator into test mode which turns off most of the CAS functions, and getting the calculator out of test mode is very complicated, so much so that it is not worth ever activating. Basically, you need access to a second calculator that is not in test mode to connect to and go through a bunch of steps with the calculators connected to each other. So, if your teacher allows you to use the calculator on exams, but only if it is in the test mode, you are far better off using a non-CAS calculator. Also, on some of the derivative and integral solutions, it gives answers that are simplified differently than "normal" so it can be hard to check your answers. That said, one thing it can really do well is triple integrals in which you are integrating over dr, but also have r as a limit of integration. This is something that is done quite a bit in an Electric and Magnetic fields class (if you are an electrical engineering major). The TI-89 will throw an error, but the Nspire can actually calculate it.
Overall, I would say that if you are just taking lower-level math classes, then this is overkill. If however, you are going into an engineering program this will make your life much easier once you learn how to use the functions you need quickly. I cannot really say how it stacks up against any of the other CAS calculators (aside from the TI-89) out there. I know that some people love TI and some people hate TI, to the extent of breaking out in hilariously dumb arguments. But, I can tell you that you will probably not ever use every single operation the calculator is capable of, but if you are in an engineering program, it will help.
There are a few issues that I discovered along the way. The menus can be a pain in the butt to navigate unless you are using one of the common math functions. For example, the statistics material is hard to find and access. Second, you pretty much have to go to YouTube to figure out how to do things on it because it does not come with a manual that helps at all. And, doing some things like changing from Radian to Degree mode that is relatively easy on TI's other calculators like the 84 plus, and the 89, is tricky on the Nspire. Also, there is a very deceptive mode that is on one of the settings screens that says something like "press to test". At first glance, it looks like it would run some kind of diagnostic on the calculator, but what it really does is put the calculator into test mode which turns off most of the CAS functions, and getting the calculator out of test mode is very complicated, so much so that it is not worth ever activating. Basically, you need access to a second calculator that is not in test mode to connect to and go through a bunch of steps with the calculators connected to each other. So, if your teacher allows you to use the calculator on exams, but only if it is in the test mode, you are far better off using a non-CAS calculator. Also, on some of the derivative and integral solutions, it gives answers that are simplified differently than "normal" so it can be hard to check your answers. That said, one thing it can really do well is triple integrals in which you are integrating over dr, but also have r as a limit of integration. This is something that is done quite a bit in an Electric and Magnetic fields class (if you are an electrical engineering major). The TI-89 will throw an error, but the Nspire can actually calculate it.
Overall, I would say that if you are just taking lower-level math classes, then this is overkill. If however, you are going into an engineering program this will make your life much easier once you learn how to use the functions you need quickly. I cannot really say how it stacks up against any of the other CAS calculators (aside from the TI-89) out there. I know that some people love TI and some people hate TI, to the extent of breaking out in hilariously dumb arguments. But, I can tell you that you will probably not ever use every single operation the calculator is capable of, but if you are in an engineering program, it will help.
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