An Apple-1 computer featuring a rare Koa wood case is expected to be sold for roughly $500,000. John Moran Auctioneers, Inc.
An Apple-1 computer featuring a rare Koa wood case is expected to be sold for roughly $500,000. John Moran Auctioneers, Inc.
An Apple-1 computer featuring a rare Koa wood case is expected to be sold for roughly $500,000. John Moran Auctioneers, Inc.
An Apple-1 computer featuring a rare Koa wood case is expected to be sold for roughly $500,000. John Moran Auctioneers, Inc.

Business

Technology

Apple-1 computer built by Jobs and Wozniak auctioned off

Vintage computer featuring rare Koa wood encasing sold for $500,000

Kyle Fitzgerald
Kyle Fitzgerald

November 09, 2021

  • English
  • Arabic

An original Apple computer hand-built by company founders Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs went up for auction in the US on Tuesday.

The Apple-1 unit, built in 1976, sold for $500,000.

The computer is one of the few remaining examples of Apple's first-ever computer and is considered the great-great-grandfather of today's sleek MacBooks, John Moran Auctioneers said.

“This is kind of the holy grail for vintage electronics and computer tech collectors,” Apple-1 expert Corey Cohen told The Los Angeles Times.

An etching of Apple co-founder Steve Wozniack is displayed following a command from the vintage Apple-1 computer. Photo: John Moran Auctioneers
An etching of Apple co-founder Steve Wozniack is displayed following a command from the vintage Apple-1 computer. Photo: John Moran Auctioneers

The so-called Chaffey College Apple-1 is one of only 200 made by Jobs and Mr Wozniak at the very start of the company's odyssey from garage start-up to a company now worth $2 trillion.

This unit has only ever had two owners, per the auctioneers. An electronics professor at Chaffey College originally purchased it before selling it to a student in 1977.

The unnamed former student paid $650 at the time and has held o nto the vintage device for four decades, the LA Times reported.

A command from the Apple-1 computer shows an illustration on the device's screen. Photo: John Moran Auctioneers
A command from the Apple-1 computer shows an illustration on the device's screen. Photo: John Moran Auctioneers

This would not be the first Apple-1 to be sold at a jaw-dropping price. An auction house in New York sold an Apple-1 device for more than $900,000 in 2014.

What makes this vintage device so valuable is its rare Koa wood encasing and is only one of six in the world to feature it.

An Apple-1 computer featuring a rare Koa wood case is only one of a handful that still function today. Screengrab / John Moran Auctioneers, Inc.
An Apple-1 computer featuring a rare Koa wood case is only one of a handful that still function today. Screengrab / John Moran Auctioneers, Inc.

Koa wood was abundant in the 1970s but, because of cattle grazing and extensive logging, is much rarer and expensive today.

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The computer "has recently undergone an extensive authentication, restoration and evaluation process by one of the foremost experts in the field, who inspected all components and generated a full condition report", the listing said.

The unit also comes with a copy of the Apple-1 basic manual, an original programming manual, two Apple-1 software cassette tapes as well as three original video, power and cassette interface cables.

Sixty of the Apple-1 computers are known to still exist, with only about 20 capable of functioning, Mr Cohen said.

Agencies contributed to this report

Jimmy Grewal sits in front of the incredibly rare Apple I, the first personal computer sold by Apple in 1976. Cody Combs / The National
Jimmy Grewal sits in front of the incredibly rare Apple I, the first personal computer sold by Apple in 1976. Cody Combs / The National
Apple's first attempt at a laptop, the Macintosh Portable, from 1989. It weighed 7 kilograms, but its battery lasted from 6 to 12 hours. Cody Combs / The National
Apple's first attempt at a laptop, the Macintosh Portable, from 1989. It weighed 7 kilograms, but its battery lasted from 6 to 12 hours. Cody Combs / The National
Left to right: Apple I, Apple II, Apple Lisa, Macintosh 512k. Cody Combs / The National
Left to right: Apple I, Apple II, Apple Lisa, Macintosh 512k. Cody Combs / The National
A closeup of one of the first Macintosh models. Cody Combs / The National
A closeup of one of the first Macintosh models. Cody Combs / The National
This Apple II (serial #92) has no vents on the casing, making it very rare, unlike the Apple II on the left. Grewal says only approximately a dozen of these ventless Apple IIs remain in existence. Cody Combs / The National
This Apple II (serial #92) has no vents on the casing, making it very rare, unlike the Apple II on the left. Grewal says only approximately a dozen of these ventless Apple IIs remain in existence. Cody Combs / The National
This Apple II was purchased by the American School of Dubai in 1978. Cody Combs / The National
This Apple II was purchased by the American School of Dubai in 1978. Cody Combs / The National
This sticker, complete with typo, shows just how old this Apple II is. Cody Combs / The National
This sticker, complete with typo, shows just how old this Apple II is. Cody Combs / The National
The original 128k Macintosh sits on the top left of this portion of Grewal's Apple Collection. Also pictured just below is the 20th Anniversary Macintosh. Cody Combs / The National
The original 128k Macintosh sits on the top left of this portion of Grewal's Apple Collection. Also pictured just below is the 20th Anniversary Macintosh. Cody Combs / The National
Grewal's collection is still growing, prompting him to move computers to different locatins to make room. Cody Combs / The National
Grewal's collection is still growing, prompting him to move computers to different locatins to make room. Cody Combs / The National
Some of Apple's first attempts at "tower" Macintosh computers, like the Macintohs Quadra, are also in Grewal's collection. Cody Combs / The National
Some of Apple's first attempts at "tower" Macintosh computers, like the Macintohs Quadra, are also in Grewal's collection. Cody Combs / The National
No detail was too small for Grewal in presenting his the Apple products. These cabinets were colour matched to correspond with the original rainbow Apple logo. Cody Combs / The National
No detail was too small for Grewal in presenting his the Apple products. These cabinets were colour matched to correspond with the original rainbow Apple logo. Cody Combs / The National
Grewal's collection of Apple laptops, ranging from the Apple Duo to the Apple PowerBooks continues to grow. Cody Combs / The National
Grewal's collection of Apple laptops, ranging from the Apple Duo to the Apple PowerBooks continues to grow. Cody Combs / The National
This unusually large Apple product is a rare Apple Network Server. These ran a Unix-based operating system. Cody Combs / The National
This unusually large Apple product is a rare Apple Network Server. These ran a Unix-based operating system. Cody Combs / The National
The first Apple LaserWriter, manufactured in 1985, is one of several Apple printers in Grewal's collection. Cody Combs / The National
The first Apple LaserWriter, manufactured in 1985, is one of several Apple printers in Grewal's collection. Cody Combs / The National
This Apple Scribe printer utilized special thermal paper. The quality was poor and the printing was slow, but the thermal paper was an innovative idea at the time. Cody Combs / The National
This Apple Scribe printer utilized special thermal paper. The quality was poor and the printing was slow, but the thermal paper was an innovative idea at the time. Cody Combs / The National
Also in Grewal's collection is an Apple Interactive Television Box from 1994. It was never released. Cody Combs / The National
Also in Grewal's collection is an Apple Interactive Television Box from 1994. It was never released. Cody Combs / The National
It's not technically an Apple product, but this NeXT Cube was the computer created by Steve Jobs' company, "Next", after he was fired from Apple in 1985. It's shaped almost perfectly like a cube, was very powerful, but sold poorly. Cody Combs / The National
It's not technically an Apple product, but this NeXT Cube was the computer created by Steve Jobs' company, "Next", after he was fired from Apple in 1985. It's shaped almost perfectly like a cube, was very powerful, but sold poorly. Cody Combs / The National
In Grewal's other office, Apple product cases are used to prop up a coffee table, and various Apple artefacts and photos are displayed on the wall. Cody Combs / The National
In Grewal's other office, Apple product cases are used to prop up a coffee table, and various Apple artefacts and photos are displayed on the wall. Cody Combs / The National
This is a rarely used early rendition of the Apple logo. It's signed by Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, and the often forgotten co-founder Ron Wayne. Cody Combs / The National
This is a rarely used early rendition of the Apple logo. It's signed by Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, and the often forgotten co-founder Ron Wayne. Cody Combs / The National
Inside this original Macintosh 128k, you can see the molded signatures from the original Macintosh team, including the signature of Steve Jobs. Cody Combs / The National
Inside this original Macintosh 128k, you can see the molded signatures from the original Macintosh team, including the signature of Steve Jobs. Cody Combs / The National
An Apple Dot Matrix Printer, first introduced in 1982. Cody Combs / The National
An Apple Dot Matrix Printer, first introduced in 1982. Cody Combs / The National
This rare Apple I was the first product shipped by Apple in 1976. This particular Apple I in Grewal's Dubai collection still works. Cody Combs / The National
This rare Apple I was the first product shipped by Apple in 1976. This particular Apple I in Grewal's Dubai collection still works. Cody Combs / The National
This is an original Apple Lisa in Grewal's Dubai collection. It was the first Apple computer to have a graphical user interface. Grewal says approximately 20 of the original Lisa computers remain in the world. Cody Combs / The National
This is an original Apple Lisa in Grewal's Dubai collection. It was the first Apple computer to have a graphical user interface. Grewal says approximately 20 of the original Lisa computers remain in the world. Cody Combs / The National
Sheikh Zayed's poem

When it is unveiled at Abu Dhabi Art, the Standing Tall exhibition will appear as an interplay of poetry and art. The 100 scarves are 100 fragments surrounding five, figurative, female sculptures, and both sculptures and scarves are hand-embroidered by a group of refugee women artisans, who used the Palestinian cross-stitch embroidery art of tatreez. Fragments of Sheikh Zayed’s poem Your Love is Ruling My Heart, written in Arabic as a love poem to his nation, are embroidered onto both the sculptures and the scarves. Here is the English translation.

Your love is ruling over my heart

Your love is ruling over my heart, even a mountain can’t bear all of it

Woe for my heart of such a love, if it befell it and made it its home

You came on me like a gleaming sun, you are the cure for my soul of its sickness

Be lenient on me, oh tender one, and have mercy on who because of you is in ruins

You are like the Ajeed Al-reem [leader of the gazelle herd] for my country, the source of all of its knowledge

You waddle even when you stand still, with feet white like the blooming of the dates of the palm

Oh, who wishes to deprive me of sleep, the night has ended and I still have not seen you

You are the cure for my sickness and my support, you dried my throat up let me go and damp it

Help me, oh children of mine, for in his love my life will pass me by. 

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While you're here
RESULTS

2pm: Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 (Dirt) 1,200m
Winner: Najem Al Rwasi, Fabrice Veron (jockey), Ahmed Al Shemaili (trainer)

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3pm: Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 1,700m
Winner: Harbh, Pat Cosgrave, Ahmed Al Mehairbi

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Winner: Wakeel W’Rsan, Richard Mullen, Jaci Wickham

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Winner: Jawaal, Fernando Jara, Majed Al Jahouri

4.30pm: Sheikh Ahmed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Cup (TB) Dh200,000 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Tailor’s Row, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer

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ESSENTIALS

The flights

Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.

The hotels

Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.

The tours

A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages. 

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Price: base / as tested: Dh91,000 / Dh114,000

Engine: 3.5-litre V6

Gearbox: Eight-speed automatic

Power: 298hp @ 6,600rpm

Torque: 356Nm @ 4,700rpm

Fuel economy, combined: 7.0L / 100km

The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo

The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Power: 350hp @ 7,400rpm
Torque: 374Nm @ 5,200rpm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
​​​​​​​Fuel consumption, combined: 10.5L / 100km

Lexus LX700h specs

Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor

Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm

Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm

Transmission: 10-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh590,000

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The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.


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Updated: November 10, 2021, 7:19 PM`
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