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Straight from the bedroom of Steve Jobs: Apple 1
Tue, 12th Nov 2013
FYI, this story is more than a year old

Earlier this year, Germany auction site TeamBreker made world news by breaking the record price for an Apple 1 Computer.

The 1976 original unit surpassed all expectations when it sold for $825k at auction in May.

Fast forward a few months and the auction site will be offering another Apple 1 Computer, but this time with its original white cardboard box - for an estimated US$670k.

The unit, numbered "46", comes from the first batch of 50 computers by Apple‘s first client, the Byte Shop.

In the official listing, Team Breker claims "No. 46" is one of very few Apple 1s still in working order, as well as still in its original box.

Added to the device, a scarce photograph of the bedroom in Jobs‘ parental house shows a stack of identical boxes of the first order of 50 units.

Although a US$670k starting price for a computer that does not even have the internet may seem staggering, the Apple 1 phenomenon has had a steady build-up.

In fact, early model Apple Computers have been changing hands privately for many years but have only lately started to appear at public auctions.

"Apple‘s instant brand recognition and customer loyalty for its newest, as well as its oldest, products is one of the main factors behind record prices," TeamBreker claims.

"Although Apple 1 was not outstandingly advanced for its time, it was the first product of today‘s most valuable company. It is arguably their most iconic invention."

There is, however, a third factor as important as the first two: nostalgia.

"Collectors tend to identify with the items they remember as youngsters, especially in an ever-changing field like computing," TeamBreker adds.

"Not only does the Apple 1 carry an unmistakable historical importance as one of the first affordable home computers, it is a tangible symbol of the 'American Dream'; two young students had an idea... and 35 years later it became the most successful company in the world."

But valuing a cultural icon is not an easy task. So what is the current value of a working, Apple I Computer with its original software and original box?

Apple fans across the world will find out on November 16…

How much do you think the computer will sell for? Tell us your predictions in the comments below