Unopened First Generation iPhone sold at Auction for $30K+

Image by Pete Linforth from Pixabay

Apple Inc. 168,00 -1,38 -0,81% iPhone 14 came out this fall with a starting MSRP of $799 USD. Recently an unopened first generation (2007) 8 GB iPhone went up for auction. The starting bid was $2500 USD and sold for a little over $33K USD.

The very first iPhone came with a 3.5-inch screen, a 2-megapixel camera, and a web browser. When the late Apple co-founder and CEO Steve Jobs first introduced it 15 years ago, he called it a combination of “an iPod, a phone, and an internet communicator” all in one.

“This factory sealed, first-release example is in exceptional condition,” the item description from LCG Auctions says. “Collectors and investors would be hard pressed to find a superior example. Relevance and rarity comprise a winning formula for this red hot collectible.”

Not a bad investment turning $600 (2007 MSRP) into somewhere around $28K (give or take with auction fees/commissions) in 15-years. I am curious about the back story with this. Was the iPhone originally purchased by a collector or someone who thought, ‘may be this will be worth a lot of money some day’ (much like the people who bought into the Google Inc. 157,46 +0,58 +0,37% IPO back in 2004 at $85 a share) . Or perhaps it was business, or someone who happened to come across this unopened 2007 iPhone and wonder ‘how much could I sell this for’?

via Business Insider