LCG Auctions has set a new record after selling a factory-sealed 4GB original iPhone for an unprecedented $190,373 USD (about $250,897 CAD). The phone started at $10,000 USD and ended up with 28 total bids.
This staggering sale not only made headlines but also shattered the previous record for the most expensive iPhone ever sold at auction. The historic sale marked a 300% increase over the previous record of $63,356 USD ($83,500 CAD), set in February for an 8GB original iPhone.
The record-breaking 4GB iPhone, first released in 2007, was discontinued within months of its launch as customers showed a preference for the larger 8GB model. As such, this particular version has become a rare commodity, adding to its appeal among collectors.
“Despite the extensive worldwide media exposure our previous sales received and the hundreds of contacts we’ve had with consumers who thought they had a factory-sealed original iPhone, this is the only 4GB factory-sealed version to surface,” said Mark Montero, Founder of LCG Auctions, in a statement to iPhone in Canada.
“Based upon our recent record-setting sales and the fact that the 4GB model is probably 20-times rarer than the 8GB version, we are not surprised it established a new record price but surpassing the $190,000 mark was quite surprising,” he added.
The consignor, a member of the original engineering team at Apple, added credibility to the phone’s auction story. The original iPhone, with a retail price of $499 USD for the 4GB model and $599 USD for the 8GB, changed the landscape of the smartphone industry with its touchscreen, 2-megapixel camera, and web browser. In 2007, Time Magazine named it the “Invention of the Year.”
The Summer Premier Auction also featured an 8GB, a 16GB version, and an 8GB European version, which together with the 4GB model, sold for a combined total of $264,996 USD. The auction also set a new record for a 1980s toy, with a 1984 Transformers: Megatron toy fetching a remarkable $57,596 USD.
This record-breaking auction reiterates the significance and value of historical tech products, with Apple’s first iPhone leading the pack—and sealed to boot.
