Replacing mobile phones every one or two years is common practice today. New products with advanced technology and software updates are released several times a year by different brands.
It is no surprise, therefore, that mobile phones tend to be considered outdated after a year or two.
At the same time, however, some devices dating back as far as 1984 are now viewed as collector items. If the phones are in good condition, they can be sold at significant prices.
Indeed, you could be sitting on a fortune according to an online antiques marketplace you could earn as much as $39,000 – which is the price someone paid on an unopened first-generation iPhone, which cost more than fifty times the original price.
Protect Your Bubble has released a report finding that many old phones are fetching a pretty penny on online auctions. Although you might not be sitting on a $39,000 iPhone first generation that remains unopened in its original packaging, you could have a device that might be worth several hundred dollars at auction.
According to Protect Your Bubble, the original iPhone (above) model sells for an average price of $621. The phone revolutionized the world and was first unveiled in 2007 by then-Apple CEO Steve Jobs at the MacWorld San Francisco event with the slogan “Apple reinvents the phone.”
And of the most valuable model that might be lurking in your home is the Motorola DynaTAC 8000x (above), one of which recently sold for more than $2,035. Released way back in 1984, it was made famous by Michael Douglas’ banker character in the film Wall Street.
The phone cost about $3,440 back in 1984. You won’t be able to sell it for its original price but you should be able to get a lot of money for it if it is in good condition. There were only twelve of these types of phones sold within the last year.
Another profitable old phone that you might have sitting around is the HTC Touch Diamond2 (above). The phone was released in 2009 a year after the second-generation iPhone 3G was released. This phone was branded a “personal digital assistant” by Windows and can earn you as much as $622.
Other popular models include the Nokia Mobira Senator, also released in the ’80s, which recently sold for more than $800.
But don’t worry if you never owned these early models because even some more ubiquitous phones, including the Nokia 3310 that was everywhere in the early Noughties, could leave you with a decent return. They can sell for between $10 and $55, according to the list.
Well, that’s better than nothing!
And, even more surprisingly, some more recent models could be worth a tidy amount, including the iPhone 3G, which could sell for up to $1,000.
According to AWM, below are the lists of other retro phones that can earn you money at auction include:
- Motorola RAZR2 – which averages a sale price of $274.
- Motorola Microtac 9800X – which averages a sale price of $263.
- Motorola International 3200 – which averages a sale price of $247.
- Nokia 7280 – which averages a sale price of $206.
- Ericsson T39 – which averages a sale price of $168.
We don’t know about you but we’re off to rummage through the garage immediately…
Source: AWM
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