Vintage Apple iPhone from 2007 Fetches a Staggering $190,000 at Auction

When you leave the store with an iPhone, its worth typically drops precipitously. A first edition, unused 4GB device sold for $190,372.80 (£145,416) at an auction in the US, proving that there are some exceptions to the rule.

Since there weren’t many of these produced at the time, iPhone aficionados regarded the model as the “Holy Grail.” The LCG Auctions-run item received a total of 28 bids and sold for roughly 400 times its original listing price. In addition to the hammer price that the buyer paid to the auction house, or “buyer’s premium,” the total cost also includes administrative expenses. Rather than going to the seller, the buyer’s premium is paid to the auction house.

It was referred to as “a popular high-end” and “red-hot collectible” by LCG Auctions, who also mentioned that two other factory-sealed, first-edition iPhones had sold for record sums in the previous 12 months. A first-release, factory-sealed, incredibly uncommon 4GB model in outstanding condition was detailed on the website. The factory seal is immaculate, with accurate seam details, and it is tight around the surface and edges. The property, which had been priced at $599 (£457) when it first went on sale, was projected to fetch between $50,000 and $100,000, but it managed to break all prior records. The 4GB model was first introduced in 2007 by Steve Jobs, who was also the CEO of Apple at the time. Due to slow sales, the tech giant decided to stop selling it just two months later.

The 8GB variant, which was released at the same time and offered users twice as much storage for just $100 more, ended up being the device that the majority of customers chose to buy. A few unique pieces of Apple history or artifacts from Mr. Jobs’ life and career are sold at auction every few months. Among them are pictures of him in college and a business card from 1978. He wrote a poem for one of his high school classmates’ yearbooks. A pancreatic cancer patient, the co-founder of Apple passed away in 2011 at the age of 56.

In a statement, Apple claimed that Jobs had “immeasurably improved” the world by being “the source of innumerable innovations that enrich and better all of our lives.” He popularized the vibrant design of the iMac computer, as well as the iPod, iPhone, and iPad.