A 2007 first-generation iPhone that had never been used and was still in its factory-sealed box fetched an astounding $63,356.40 (Rs 52.47 lakh) at auction on Sunday.
According to CNN, the device sold for more than 100 times its original retail price. The first iPhone, which retailed for $599 (Rs 49,225) at the time, featured a 3.5-inch screen with a 2-megapixel camera, as well as 4 GB and 8 GB storage options, internet access, and iTunes. It lacked an app store, ran on a 2G network and was only available on AT&T's network.
Online bidding for this phone started earlier this month at $2,500 (Rs 2,07031), and ten purchasers competed to win the iPhone. The news outlet cited the gadget auctioneer, LCG Auctions, and stated that the winner was "a individual from the US."
Karen Green, a cosmetic tattoo artist, was the original owner of the phone, which she received as a gift from friends in 2007 when she started a new job.
As Ms. Green already had a phone and didn't want to switch telecommunications providers in order to activate the iPhone, she chose not to unlock the phone box. Before to being valued on the daytime television programme "The Doctor & The Diva" in 2019, the phone was sealed for 12 years.
The CNN article mentioned that an appraiser on the show valued the phone at $5,000 (Rs 4,14,062) at the time.
On its page, the auctioneer LCG Auctions described it as a "highly desirable factory sealed first-generation original Apple iPhone from 2007."
"The original first-release iPhone in factory-sealed condition is widely regarded as a blue-chip asset amongst high-end collectors," the auction house said.
Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world
