Skip to main content

The context you need, when you need it

When news breaks, you need to understand what actually matters — and what to do about it. At Vox, our mission to help you make sense of the world has never been more vital. But we can’t do it on our own.

We rely on readers like you to fund our journalism. Will you support our work and become a Vox Member today?

Join now

A rare Apple 1 is up for auction. Bids are already over $270,000 with nearly a week to go.

The unit, for sale on Charitybuzz, could be an early prototype.

Charitybuzz

A rare Apple 1 computer, possibly even a prototype, is up for auction on Charitybuzz; bids have already topped $270,000 with six days remaining.

The computer differs from many of the production units in ways experts say make it likely the unit is one of the earliest of the Apple machines.

“It’s the rookie card, for lack of a better word,” Apple expert Corey Cohen told Recode. The Apple 1 up for auction contains original manuals, a cassette tape with BASIC programming language and other accessories and documentation.

Cohen said most of the early machines were hand finished by either Dan Kottke or Steve Jobs, and there’s a good chance this one was put together by Jobs.

“Dan doesn’t remember assembling this one,” Cohen said, saying he talked to the early Apple employee about the machine up for auction. The BASIC cassette, which Kottke did create, contains the words “Good Luck” written in his handwriting.

Cohen said the original owner of the unit is not known. The present owner bought it back in 2000 for $18,000, then the going rate for such machines.

While it’s hard to say how much the machine will fetch now, other Apple 1s have garnered as much as $900,000. A portion of the proceeds from this auction are set to benefit the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society of Arizona.

This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

More in Technology

Podcasts
Are humanoid robots all hype?Are humanoid robots all hype?
Podcast
Podcasts

AI is making them better — but they’re not going to be doing your chores anytime soon.

By Avishay Artsy and Sean Rameswaram
Future Perfect
The old tech that could help stop the next airborne pandemicThe old tech that could help stop the next airborne pandemic
Future Perfect

Glycol vapors, explained.

By Shayna Korol
Future Perfect
Elon Musk could lose his case against OpenAI — and still get what he wantsElon Musk could lose his case against OpenAI — and still get what he wants
Future Perfect

It’s not about who wins. It’s about the dirty laundry you air along the way.

By Sara Herschander
Life
Why banning kids from AI isn’t the answerWhy banning kids from AI isn’t the answer
Life

What kids really need in the age of artificial intelligence.

By Anna North
Culture
Anthropic owes authors $1.5B for pirating work — but the claims process is a Kafkaesque messAnthropic owes authors $1.5B for pirating work — but the claims process is a Kafkaesque mess
Culture

“Your AI monster ate all our work. Now you’re trying to pay us off with this piece of garbage that doesn’t work.”

By Constance Grady
Future Perfect
Some deaf children are hearing again because of a new gene therapySome deaf children are hearing again because of a new gene therapy
Future Perfect

A medical field that almost died is quietly fixing one disease at a time.

By Bryan Walsh