Apple-1 Computer Hand-Numbered by Steve Jobs Expected to Fetch Over $375,000 at Auction

[Captain Trips]

How much can I get for a Pentium?

$80586 😎

At one time Intel was expected to call the Pentium the 80586 (following 8086, 80186, 80386 and 80486), but they couldn'y trademark a number, so they went with something they could trademark.

 

[Captain Trips]

What a rip off. You could probably get a fully specced Mac Pro for a little more.

With or without the wheels?

 

[windowsblowsass]

My guess is it sells closer to 800k

a year ago it might have but the collectibles market bubble burst

 

[meaning-matters]

Both Steve's paid attention to PCB visuals. I did this too back in the day. Loving Apple came natural.

 

[tridley68]

Thats alot of money for an outdated dust collector .

 

[CarAnalogy]

I actually use all of those keys (sans the Insert key) on the regular. I wonder if I'm one of the few. Not something that usually comes up at the dinner table so I have no way to know. 😄

I use them too but full size keyboards are indeed becoming rarer.

Apparently you can do most or all of that with Fn + arrow keys but I always forget which is which.

 

[ncbill]

Were I the owner I'd keep it for another decade then start the bidding at $1 million.

 

[ignatius345]

Yes, they were.

Back in the day, my math teacher in middle school in California brought one of these into class one day. I think he had a wooden case he'd built. These were definitely hobbyist items, so it was totally expected you'd know how to solder, build your own case, etc.

 

[torontotim]

"When it was sold in 2018, the buyer paid $375,000, so it could potentially go for even more this time around."

Who writes/edits this nonsense? WTF does a price paid at auction in 2018 have to do with the potential value in 2022?

 

[_Spinn_]

This is a very cool piece of history.

 

[ILoveCalvinCool]

"When it was sold in 2018, the buyer paid $375,000, so it could potentially go for even more this time around."

Who writes/edits this nonsense? WTF does a price paid at auction in 2018 have to do with the potential value in 2022?

Because usually things like this sell for more than they did the last time, so the $375K provides a baseline for future value. It's very reasonable to include this information.

 

[mike9449]

I am so happy I waited until the Apple II came out. It was a huge upgrade over that.

I still have my ][+, as well as a IIc, and IIgs. All fully functional and with original accessories.

 

[Breaking Good]

How many more of these are we gonna find? Next, it will be Apple I found in Steve’s attic in the card board box behind the bookshelf.

The article mentions that there are an estimated 60 to 70 still in existence. I don't think it is unreasonable to expect that three of them would come up for auction every year.

I think they are a fascinating piece of history. But if you owned one, what would you do with it?

I would guess that for people who can afford to own collectibles like this, the novelty of owning it wears off after a number of years. So they sell it and buy another collectible.

 

[v0lume4]

I use them too but full size keyboards are indeed becoming rarer.

Apparently you can do most or all of that with Fn + arrow keys but I always forget which is which.

Are they? I don't see anything less than full sized in offices, libraries, etc.

If you mean they're becoming rarer on laptops, then I'm all for it. I use the number pad all the time with my job, but that's at my desk. I want my laptop keyboard centered. 🙂 Having said that, I see full size keyboards on laptops on the regular in the Windows world (15" and larger). I WISH they were rarer on laptops.

 

[Jhonjhon236]

Why are all the Apple-1’s busted open like this?

Were they sold as open mother boards?

What do you mean by "Busted open"? Everything looks Okay.

 

[JM]

What do you mean by "Busted open"? Everything looks Okay.

It looks like computer guts. Ha

But it’s fine everyone already explained that’s how they all looked.

 

[UnusedLoginID]

The article mentions that there are an estimated 60 to 70 still in existence. I don't think it is unreasonable to expect that three of them would come up for auction every year.

I think they are a fascinating piece of history. But if you owned one, what would you do with it?

I would guess that for people who can afford to own collectibles like this, the novelty of owning it wears off after a number of years. So they sell it and buy another collectible.

I would expect more and more to come to auction. If you had an Apple I in 1976, assuming you got it at age 30 when you could afford it, you would be 76 years old. If you have two (or more) kids, it's much easier to split a $500,000 check than cut the board of the Apple I in half 😉

 

[Breaking Good]

If you had an Apple I in 1976, assuming you got it at age 30 when you could afford it, you would be 76 years old.

That begs the question as to how many of these are still in the hands of the original owners.