An extremely rare Apple-1 computer, the original 1976 design created by famous engineer Steve Wozniak, went on auction on eBay for an initial price of $ 1.5 million.
The Apple-1 was the first Apple product sold to consumers, the result of Wozniak selling a $ 500 calculator and the late Steve Jobs selling his VW Microbus to finance its development. The Apple-1 was discontinued just a year later, in 1977, when the Apple-II was launched. According to the Apple-1 Registry, only 200 Apple-1 units (plus a few in pre-production) were made.
According to eBay’s listing and the unit’s Apple-1 registration page, this Apple-1 computer is one of only six to have an original Byte Shop KOA wooden box. The computer is also in working condition with an unmodified NTI motherboard. The seller is also including an original Sony TV-115 monitor with a video modulator. Check out the eBay gallery below.
The only parts that have been replaced on this particular unit are its video and keyboard connectors, according to the unit’s Apple-1 registration page. With a hand-soldered motherboard and a slight difference in the connector pin, current owner Krishna B. Blake conjectured that it may have been originally designed for military use.
Previous Apple-1 computers were sold for up to $ 905,000 in 2014, according to CNBC. The current record holder is believed to be one of the first batches of 50 units that Wozniak himself built. Experts believe that other units of the Apple-1 can cost anywhere between $ 175,000 and $ 475,000, therefore definitely lower than the price asked by the eBay seller, but not outside the realm of possibility.
Credit: Krishmiti, eBay
According to the seller, this particular Apple-1 unit was originally purchased second hand from a Canadian computer store in 1978 for “two hundred” dollars, Blake feeling that hardware would have a place in history. Since then, he spent his life in a controlled environment in Montreal until 2015, when Blake realized his value had skyrocketed.
It remains to be seen whether the seller will reach its auction goal, but this Apple-1 will almost certainly come at a good price, regardless of its relatively primitive condition.
Joseph Knoop is a humble Windows writer / producer / user for IGN and is in perfect condition.