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Original Apple watch still sealed in the Box. is it worth anything?

Tristan Kwiatkowski

Tristan Kwiatkowski

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Mar 31, 2020
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I have a stainless steel 38 mm series 0 Apple watch with a stainless steel link band and a series 1 38 mm aluminum apple watch with white sport band still sealed in the original boxes and plastic. I had accumulated a number of watches around the time they first came out in 2015, 2016. So when I upgraded I decided to put my old eveyday series 0 on display with the sealed Apple watch that I had and I put the aluminum Apple watch in a case as well and just put them to the side hoping one day they can have some form of value.
 

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Probably an original watch will never be worth as much as an iPhone, but have you seen the price of sealed in box original iPhones are listed for on eBay?

If you're open to selling it then why not stick it up for sale at a huge price and see if anyone bites?
 
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Tristan Kwiatkowski said:
I have a stainless steel 38 mm series 0 Apple watch with a stainless steel link band and a series 1 38 mm aluminum apple watch with white sport band still sealed in the original boxes and plastic. I had accumulated a number of watches around the time they first came out in 2015, 2016. So when I upgraded I decided to put my old eveyday series 0 on display with the sealed Apple watch that I had and I put the aluminum Apple watch in a case as well and just put them to the side hoping one day they can have some form of value.
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The first GEN Apple Watch isn’t worth anything at all. [Unless of course, somebody wants to purchase the watch completely sealed and put it on the shelf to collect dust,] no one will buy that from you. Especially being that the battery is fully depleted, it would never even recover in its current state. (That is if Someone actually wanted to power it on.)

However, as for the stainless steel link band, somebody definitely would purchase that from you, as that has to be one of the most unique bands Apple has ever created for the Apple Watch with the removable links, and it’s still fairly popular, even though there’s a lot of third-party bands available that can replicate its overall looks.
 
Hold onto it and wait a while. The Apple Watch isn’t as big as the iPhone and never will be, but it’s definitely a major part of the ecosystem. I’d say it might be worth something of value once people start collecting Apple Watches the same way they collect iPhones.
 
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Relentless Power said:
The first GEN Apple Watch isn’t worth anything at all. [Unless of course, somebody wants to purchase the watch completely sealed and put it on the shelf to collect dust,] no one will buy that from you. Especially being that the battery is fully depleted, it would never even recover in its current state. (That is if Someone actually wanted to power it on.)

However, as for the stainless steel link band, somebody definitely would purchase that from you, as that has to be one of the most unique bands Apple has ever created for the Apple Watch with the removable links, and it’s still fairly popular, even though there’s a lot of third-party bands available that can replicate its overall looks.
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How can you say that it’s worth nothing at all and no one will buy it? How will the battery be completely depleted when it’s never been turned on 😂

Whilst it may not be valuable as such, I’m sure there are people out who’d buy it
 
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iFone88 said:
How can you say that it’s worth nothing at all and no one will buy it?
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Because it’s exactly that, it’s worth nothing at all. First GEN watches have no significance whatsoever, even unboxed, it was a ’mass produced’ tech item that has no relativity in terms of being exclusive or limited whatsoever. Anyone that would purchase this watch, strictly would want it for something to put on a shelf to ’look at’, which that would be an extreme minority or someone who actually sees this as a collectors item, which it is not.


iFone88 said:
How will the battery be completely depleted when it’s never been turned on 😂
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I encourage you to research ‘lithium ion battery degradation’. Anytime a lithium ion battery is not regularly charged after so long, it naturally loses its state of charge over the course of time, which in this sense, if this watch is at least five years old, and has never been turned on, once the battery itself has been completely depleted and stays that way for so long, the lithium ion battery may never fully recover or turn on.

iFone88 said:
Whilst it may not be valuable as such, I’m sure there are people out who’d buy it
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if you read what you wrote here, it is entirely contradictory. You’re saying “that a while it may not be valuable, there are some people who would buy it”. Well if it’s not valuable, then who would buy it in the first place? That’s my whole argument, is that there is no value to unboxed first GEN watch at all.

For example, You could put this watch on eBay for whatever price you think it should be worth, but that doesn’t mean somebody will share your value for something that’s not even remotely being a ‘collectors item’, unless it was limited or exclusively made.
 
I’m not sure if the watch is worth anything by itself. These are not rare items by any stretch of the imagination.

The band however will retain a lot of value especially in new condition.

iFone88 said:
How can you say that it’s worth nothing at all and no one will buy it? How will the battery be completely depleted when it’s never been turned on

Whilst it may not be valuable as such, I’m sure there are people out who’d buy it
Click to expand...

Regarding the battery, a watch that is 5 years old and has never been used is very very very surely depleted deeply. Which other consumer electronics piece with a really small rechargeable battery is known to retain a charge from the box for this timespan please?
 
Its more abut collect ability. The 1st iphones are going for >5k sealed and the battery will be gone. Its not meant to ever be opened or used. If anything the battery may be swollen and bulged.
 
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I’ve never understood “fully sealed” collectors.
The value of the item comes from the fact that it is sealed, yet nobody can actually know whether it really is inside the box. 🤔
 
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You just have to hold on to it until your great grandkid can bring it onto Antiques Roadshow in the early 2100's...
 
Wando64 said:
I’ve never understood “fully sealed” collectors.
The value of the item comes from the fact that it is sealed, yet nobody can actually know whether it really is inside the box. 🤔
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The difference is, Apple always has very unique ‘Pull-tab’ seals on their boxes. The Apple Watch isn’t necessarily using a typical shrink wrap like you would see on some products, as they have the pulltabs that once they’re broken, you’ll know if the watch has been opened or not.
 
A sealed Apple Watch or iPhone in the box is thoroughly worthless in my opinion.
The battery will eventually swell and leak and destroy the packaging.
I’m not saying there aren’t collectors paying big money for such things, but in my opinion ”collectible electronics” is an oxymoron.
 
Wando64 said:
I’ve never understood “fully sealed” collectors.
The value of the item comes from the fact that it is sealed, yet nobody can actually know whether it really is inside the box. ?
Click to expand...
Schrödinger’s cat or Manzoni's tins of feces comes to mind.
 
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Solid offer here. $20 Cdn and I’ll pay for shipping with a tracking number b/c, why not buy another something I’ll never use and just let sit on the shelf.

i do have (oops, did) have a sealed ET: Atari game. Threw in an outdoor fireplace - so 20-30 years from now I’ll probably burn this unopened watch as well.

Anyways, there ya have it $20 Cdn 🥸

Tom
 
Even though some say it’s worthless, hold onto it and every year just before Christmas list it on eBay, you might have a great Christmas surprise.
 
Since it is still in the original plastic, and me being a collector myself, I can tell you that you should be able to get at least the amount you paid for it at the very least, but likely close to double that.
 
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