Unopened, First-Generation iPhone Sells for $190,000
An unopened, original 4GB Apple iPhone that was released on June 29, 2007, has sold for a monumental $190,372.80. There were 28 total bids lodged for it, five of which were over $100,000.
Unopened, original iPhones are extremely valuable and often sell for tens of thousands of dollars, however, this particular model was exceptionally rare, as Engadget notes. While there have been sales of the 8GB version recently that brought in $40,000 and $63,000 in the last year, those were for the more “common” 8GB version of the phone. The latter set the record for a first-generation iPhone sale, until now.
This mammoth sale was for the 4GB version, which had a far more limited production run. While both 4GB and 8GB versions were available at the time of launch, the former was only produced for about two months because consumers were overwhelmingly preferring the model with more storage.
“The original 4GB model is considered a ‘Holy Grail’ amongst iPhone collectors,” LCG Auctions, the auction house that sold the iPhone writes.
“Its extreme scarcity is directly related to its limited production. Debuting on June 29th, 2007, alongside the 8GB model, the 4GB model was hampered by slow sales. Buyers chose to pay the $100 upcharge in exchange for double the storage space. The lagging sales resulted in Apple making the decision to discontinue the 4GB model on September 5th, 2007, just over two months after it was first released.”
The smartphone was a factory-sealed, first-release 4GB model that was described as in “exceptional condition” and “virtually flawless along the surface and edges.”
The value of the iPhone in question here is that it is sealed and, presumably, once that seal has been broken the value will plummet. Therefore, it is unlikely that this box will ever be opened — at least if the buyer cares about the investment.
One person who didn’t care about retaining that value is YouTuber and tech reviewer Marques Brownlee, who purchased an 8GB version earlier this year for $40,320.
After receiving it, he unboxed it on camera and showed all of the parts that came with it to satisfy anyone who wants to take a step down memory lane or, perhaps, allow anyone who had never had the opportunity to open a brand new first-generation iPhone themselves to see it.
Image credits: LCG Auctions
