Review: CITLLZEN Electronic Human Tech CT-512

I'm conflicted for this review. I've made my stance on false advertising in calculators very clear, and it's something I intend to firmly maintain. But usually when a calculator advertises something it doesn't have, I find many other faults with the device as well. It's usually made of cheap plastic, terrible buttons, ugly display, or has any number of other flaws.

CITLLZEN Electronic Human Tech CT-512.

The CITLLZEN Electronic Human Tech CT-512 is perhaps the most deceptive calculator I've ever purchased. I actually didn't know it was going to pretend to be a Citizen calculator. That company makes, I assume, fine devices, but I've yet to get my hands on and review one. It appears that the company that produced this device is trying to use that name to make sales, and I've seen identical devices for sale on Amazon for several hundred dollars. I purchased this calculator on Ebay for $4.

So we're already facing a pretty big lie. The CT-512 does not deserve the CT initials, as that's designated for real Citizen calculators. So I'm going to refer to this as the NCT-512 from now on.

The video review shows my first reaction upon experiencing this device for the very first time, so I highly recommend that. But shortly into that, I disassembled the calculator and quickly discovered that the solar cell is 100% FAKE. Had the manufacturer not placed a fake solar cell on this device, and had they not pretended to be another company, I would be giving this calculator an absolutely glowing review. 

Fake solar cell exposed when the calculator is opened.

Honestly, the NCT-512 is a fantastic calculator. It's well-built, has excellent buttons, a beautiful LED display, and a really neat "112 Steps Check" feature that lets you replay calculations. The colors used for the buttons and plastic shell look great, and for a $4 calculator, I couldn't ask for anything else.

But this is a beautiful device built on lies and deceit. I simply cannot recommend this calculator, even though I really want to. A real Citizen calculator such as the CT-555N only costs about $14, and it will have a working solar cell as well as the same features. I'll work on getting one of those to review in the future. I hesitate to post a link to purchase one of those for two reasons: I haven't reviewed it yet so I can't currently recommend it, and I'm not sure if any links I've found so far are legitimate Citizen products.

Back and front of the calculator's packaging.

Back removed.

Key pad exposed.