A pristine first-generation Apple iPhone, has fetched a jaw-dropping $63,356 at auction, a full 16 years after its initial release.

A first-generation Apple iPhone, still in its original box, has sold for a staggering $63,356 at auction – 16 years after it was first released. The sale price underscores the remarkable staying power of Apple’s iconic smartphone, which has become a coveted collector’s item for tech enthusiasts and fans of the brand. Despite being superseded by newer models, the original iPhone remains a significant piece of tech history, and this latest sale demonstrates just how much value collectors place on rare and pristine Apple products.

In stark contrast to the latest iPhone 14 Pro, which boasts a 1 TB storage capacity and a 48 megapixel camera, a 16-year-old first-generation iPhone was recently sold at an auction for $63,356. The latest iPhone model is priced at £1,099, and can go up to £1,749 for a larger screen and increased storage capacity.

The seller, Karen, had originally taken the iPhone on Doctor and the Diva’s ‘Treasure Hunt Tuesday’ in 2019, where it was estimated to be worth $5,000 by expert Dr Lori. Karen had received the phone as a gift from friends when she started a new job, but since she had already purchased a new phone, she never opened it.

The original sealed packaging and the 8 GB storage capacity contributed to the phone’s value, with Karen being told that she could expect to receive 10 to 25 percent more than if she had opened the phone. Karen was overwhelmed when the auction exceeded the original estimate on the show, and she never expected to receive over $60k for the phone.

Ms. Green intends to use the money raised from the auction of her original iPhone to support her new cosmetic tattoo studio in New Jersey. The presenters of the show jokingly criticized her for not using the phone and asked her to return it to her friends. Original iPhones have become popular collectors’ items and are expected to fetch even higher prices in the future, according to LCG.

The iPhone was first introduced by Steve Jobs at MacWorld San Francisco in January 2007, with the slogan “Apple reinvents the phone.” It was named Time Magazine’s invention of the year and sold over 6.1 million units worldwide. The iPhone faced competition from other tech giants such as Google and Samsung, who were eager to replicate its success.

Although the iPhone remains one of the world’s most popular smartphone brands, the original model has undergone significant changes in design. It had a headphone jack, home button, and large borders around its 3.5-inch display, but it was innovative with a touchscreen, a 2-megapixel camera, and a web browser. The original iPhone did not have a front-facing camera and only had a single lens on the rear. It could not access the internet using 3G, nor could it copy and paste, but its keyboardless design changed the mobile phone industry forever.