At Auction, An Original iPhone in its Original Packaging Sold for $55,000

At Auction, a first-generation iPhone still sealed in its box went for $54,904 rather than the $599 it cost when it was initially introduced in 2007.

A former Apple employee who bought the first iPhone when it was released placed it up for Auction through RR. An original, sealed iPhone set a sales record for a first-generation iPhone in February when it sold for almost $63,000.

Apple iPhone, the first version, unopened, model A1203, order MA712LL/A (8GB). The box depicts a life-size representation of the iPhone with twelve icons on the screen, indicating that it is from the early production batch (2007); a thirteenth icon for iTunes was added later in the year. Completely new and factory sealed. A bag from AT&T and a brochure on iPhone activation and tariff options are also included. The consignor states that he bought this phone when it was first released in 2007 but also received one as a perk of working for Apple; as a result, this spare was never used.

Prices have continued rising; in 2022, other unopened original iPhones sold for $35,000 and $39,000.

An “undiscovered” Apple-1 computer was also sold by RR Auction for an undisclosed sum, along with other Apple products and memorabilia that fetched high prices. A prototype Macintosh 128K sold for $16,500, a Del Yocam Macintosh Plus for $26,590, and an Apple Lisa cost $81,251.

About $4,000 was spent on a Tim Cook-signed iPhone 11, $12,500 on Steve Jobs-annotated technical manuals, and $6,188 on a Steve Jobs business card.