Unopened first-gen iPhone sells at auction for $190,000

Someone with deep pockets has snapped up a piece of tech history after forking over $190,000 for a first-generation iPhone from 2007. That's around 300 times the device's original price.

Don't expect to fetch anything close to this kind of windfall by selling a 16-year-old smartphone you have stuffed in a drawer somewhere. This was a factory sealed device in "exceptional condition," according to the listing. Auctioneer LCG Auctions noted that the consignor of the lot was part of Apple's engineering team when the iPhone debuted. "Collectors and investors would be hard pressed to find a superior example," the auction house wrote.

The lot drew interest from multiple parties as 28 bids were lodged, including five that were over $100,000. In recent months, LCG Auctions has sold two 8GB variants of the first-generation iPhone for $39,000 and $63,000. But what helps this item stand out is that it's a rare 4GB model. Apple only produced this model for two months as consumers overwhelmingly preferred a version with double the storage.

It's unlikely that the buyer will actually open the package up and use the phone, since breaking the seal would send its value nosediving. If they did, though, they'd be tinkering with a device that probably wouldn't even be able to make a phone call, since 2G networks have shut down in many parts of the world. FaceTime would be a no-go, since there's no front-facing camera and the OG iPhone can't even run a version of iOS that supports the feature. The vast majority of other apps won't work on it.

Even so, the original iPhone may still make for a decent iPod. It even had a headphone jack. Remember those?

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/unopened-first-gen-iphone-sells-at-auction-for-190000-154549102.html?src=rss