Yes in practice people used either an ad based free calculator app, a web based calculator, their phone, etc. I maintain this isn’t a big deal. Annoying and I’m glad they fixed it, but not a big deal. Or, just pay like $1 or something for a proper app.
I bought PCalc anyway, it’s better than the standard app.
It made for a lot of ad-powered free calculator apps. I think that part wasn't particularly good for users.