Rare Apple-1 Is Up For Auction And Can Fetch $600,000

(RTTNews) - One of the remaining Apple-1 computers, the first products offered by Apple Inc (AAPL) will be up for grabs in an auction on Tuesday.

The machine, made by Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs in his home in Los Altos almost 45 years back, is one of the rarest tech-artifacts available in the globe and is expected to pull the attention of many collectors as there are only 200 of them.

John Moran Auctioneers will be calling the shots for the "Chaffey College Apple-1" and the house said that the computer will have a starting price of $200,000 but the price is expected to reach $500,000 during the sale.

Among the 200 made by the founders, with help from Patty Jobs and Daniel Kottke, 50 all-in-one kits were sold to ByteShop in California. The machine is only one of the 60 that are still around. The fact that only 20 of these computers exist in a working condition, make the product even rarer.

The owner of the shop, Paul Terrell, was not happy to receive the kits, instead of finished computers but Wozniak convinced him that he could make them the way he wanted, and also sell spare keyboards and other parts.

The one going in for the auction is one of the only six systems that were built in a koa wood case, a kind of wood that was abundant in the West Coast back in the 70s. According to John Moran Auctioneers, "The Apple-1 Computer on offer has only had two owners. It was originally purchased by an electronics professor at Chaffey College in Rancho Cucamonga, CA, who then sold it to his student in 1977."

The machine has been restored by Apple-1 experts. According to JMA, the package will have other important articles as well. They added, "The lot is accompanied by a bound copy of the professional authentication and condition report and a proof of life DVD."

In 2014, an auction house sold a similar model for a whopping $905,000. Nathan Martinez, advertising and marketing director at John Moran, told East Bay Times, "When you see certain items, you just know that they're going to be showstoppers. The Apple-1 is one of those."