Huge Collection of Apple Computers Up for Sale as Longtime Austrian Repairman Goes Out of Business

[MacRumors]

Roland Borsky, an Apple computer repairman in Vienna, Austria, has amassed a private collection of 1,100 Apple computers that he's picked up over the years.

At 1,100 machines, his collection dwarfs the collection of computers at the Apple Museum in Prague, which claims to have the world's biggest private collection of Apple products. "Just as others collect cars and live in a little box to afford them, so it is with me," he said.

There's little detail on the full extent of his collection, but according to Reuters, Borsky is searching for a buyer as he can no longer afford the rent on the warehouse where the computers are held.

Borsky told Reuters that his business has dried up after Apple opened its first store in Vienna in February, taking over repairs that used to be done by repair firms like his. Parts have also become harder to replace on Apple devices.

Borsky is hoping to find a benefactor who will pay 20,000 to 30,000 euros ($23,000 to $35,000) for his collection and who will put it on display. "I would be pleased if it is simply put on display anywhere... so people can see it," Borsky told Reuters.

Some of his computers are on display in temporary exhibits in Vienna, but he wants to find a permanent home for the equipment.

If he's unable to find a buyer, Borsky fears that his collection could be discarded. "It'll be shredded. That is what bothers me the most because I can't currently rent a storage space that I can afford," he said.

Article Link: Huge Collection of Apple Computers Up for Sale as Longtime Austrian Repairman Goes Out of Business

 

[keysofanxiety]

I’d buy that for a dollar!

Seriously though, tough news about going out of business. Hope he finds a buyer soon.

 

[nwcs]

If it can’t be resold, perhaps recyclers would give him some money. There are some precious metals there. Heck, Apple might consider it a source of spare parts for cheap.

Yep, people have hobbies that dominate their finances. There always comes a time to just let it go. Before coming to this point he could have sold it all through eBay or similar. I doubt someone would buy the whole batch just to display it.

 

[tromboneaholic]

1,100 computers, but how many work?

 

[now i see it]

If that's a repair shop and all of those were taken into his shop for repair- but were deemed unrepairable and left there- doesn't that make everything in his shop "junk"?
Who on earth wants to see 1000 broken ancient Macs piled on a wall? And if they're all not broken- they might as well be because they're useless now.

All it is is a testament to non-repairable "planned obsolescence".
To the junkyard it should all go. It's depressing looking at all that junk..especially all those freaking iMacs. Get it out if my sight.

 

[bladerunner2000]

If that's a repair shop and all of those were taken into his shop for repair- but were deemed unrepairable and left there- doesn't that make everything in his shop "junk"?
Who on earth wants to see 1000 broken ancient Macs piled on a wall?
All it is is a testament to non repairable "planned obsolescence".
To the junkyard it should all go. It's depressing looking at all that junk.

You're going to see WAY MORE thanks to Apple soldering everything together and disrespecting the right to repair. Apple must be so proud.

 

[velocityg4]

It's absurd to think someone will want the whole collection. Just open it up for sale to the Mac enthusiast community. I'm sure they'll come pouring in to sift through and buy choice models. Although he probably doesn't keep his best there. Recyclers can bid on the remainder/broken ones.

Really all that's worth much are the Macs from the mid 90's and earlier. Also the Apple II lines and some of the old printers and parts.

 

[skitidetdu]

Got me thinking of my old graphite G4 and the se trough apple studio display in the attic. Not to mention my Performa 5200 from 1993

 

[fhall1]

If that's the best picture of his "collection" he could come up with - he has a lot of old Apple junk (but not old enough).

 

[Unggoy Murderer]

If that's a repair shop and all of those were taken into his shop for repair- but were deemed unrepairable and left there- doesn't that make everything in his shop "junk"?
Who on earth wants to see 1000 broken ancient Macs piled on a wall? And if they're all not broken- they might as well be because they're useless now.

All it is is a testament to non-repairable "planned obsolescence".
To the junkyard it should all go. It's depressing looking at all that junk..especially all those freaking iMacs. Get it out if my sight.

Some people collect coins, stamps or cars. Who are we to judge if someone want's to collect old computer equipment?

 

[omihek]

I'd rather look at new Macs on display at the Apple Store. Not sure who in the world would buy all those old broken computers.

 

[Spock]

If that's the best picture of his "collection" he could come up with - he has a lot of old Apple junk (but not old enough).

If you look on the shelf close to the edge of the screen to the left, it looks like at least parts of an old Apple Lisa or Macintosh XL They sell pretty good on eBay when they pop up and there could be more of them or parts.

 

[duervo]

Professional hoarding. Sort of makes me curious what his living space must be like.

He wants to apparently sell the entire lot as one sale. Good luck with that. While it would be logistically easier to do, it increases the risk of being stuck with all of it. He might be better off selling it by individual pieces, or in smaller lots.

 

[MrJeffreyGee]

He should donate it to the Computer Museum in California.

 

[fhall1]

He should donate it to the Computer Museum in California.

He probably would - as long as they took everything - the trick is getting all that stuff transported from Austria to California.

 

[NY Guitarist]

Professional hoarding. Sort of makes me curious what his living space must be like.

Actually, this looks clean and well organized.

 

[johncarync]

Mostly junk worth its weight in scrap metal. A lot of hoarders have pipe dreams that their stuff is worth a lot. I've seen more valuable things on episodes of "Hoarders" and "Hoarding: Buried Alive." Get a camera crew and some dumpsters to Austria. This would be a good episode to watch.

 

[3gon]

Where is the exhibition in Vienna?

Roland Borsky, an Apple computer repairman in Vienna, Austria, has amassed a private collection of 1,100 Apple computers that he's picked up over the years.

At 1,100 machines, his collection dwarfs the collection of computers at the Apple Museum in Prague, which claims to have the world's biggest private collection of Apple products. "Just as others collect cars and live in a little box to afford them, so it is with me," he said.

There's little detail on the full extent of his collection, but according to Reuters, Borsky is searching for a buyer as he can no longer afford the rent on the warehouse where the computers are held.

Borsky told Reuters that his business has dried up after Apple opened its first store in Vienna in February, taking over repairs that used to be done by repair firms like his. Parts have also become harder to replace on Apple devices.

Borsky is hoping to find a benefactor who will pay 20,000 to 30,000 euros ($23,000 to $35,000) for his collection and who will put it on display. "I would be pleased if it is simply put on display anywhere... so people can see it," Borsky told Reuters.

Some of his computers are on display in temporary exhibits in Vienna, but he wants to find a permanent home for the equipment.

If he's unable to find a buyer, Borsky fears that his collection could be discarded. "It'll be shredded. That is what bothers me the most because I can't currently rent a storage space that I can afford," he said.

Article Link: Huge Collection of Apple Computers Up for Sale as Longtime Austrian Repairman Goes Out of Business

 

[justperry]

Junk?
Probably worth it, just need to sell it for parts on the internet, he's probably not capable of doing this himself.

 

[rafark]

That's definitely not junk, not in the right hands at least. He could assemble the post 2008 macs with working parts, sell each for $100-400, and sell the remaining components individually. You'd be surprised how many people shop for individual components, like the imac ram cover, for example. he has thousands of components from hundreds of macs he can sell online.

 

[Schnegg]

Kinda sad he has to close up. Those repair shops had a lot of knowledgable people.

 

[[AUT] Thomas]

There are probably a few units that would account for >90% of the sales. The rest isn't worth the effort putting on ebay. I'd just "open the doors" for interested people to stop by and buy what they want. No way someone buys all off that...

Where is the exhibition in Vienna?

Not sure about the exhibition, but according to the Reuters article the stuff is located in Korneuburg.

 

[5105973]

What a sad thing for this man to lose his business and not be able to keep his collection. I hope he has some other job lined up for himself. And I hope he is able to find a buyer for the majority of his stuff. Sadly that doesn’t look likely according to what many of you are saying.

I collect some things because I enjoy them, but I never expect to recoup any value from them. After awhile some collections do grow too large and become a burden rather than a joy, so it is time to re-home some things when that happens.

 

[Colonel Blimp]

If that's the best picture of his "collection" he could come up with - he has a lot of old Apple junk (but not old enough).

That is surely only a small part of his collection, most of which must be stored in the warehouse he can no longer afford.

I doubt that even in Vienna, with all its old-world architectural elegance, do the warehouses have oiled wood floors.

 

[bruinsrme]

If there’s an apple store nearby they will recycle them for him