'Antiques Roadshow' guest just brought an iPhone to the show — yes, we are all feeling really old

When the Apple iPhone was first launched almost two decades ago, no one imagined that it would become a game-changing product and a highly sought-after brand in the smartphone market. Although loyal Apple customers and new ones who join the club eagerly wait for new models to replace the previous handset every year, the first ever model from 2007 has now become somewhat of a collectible. According to Metro, onlookers were stunned during a recording of "Antiques Roadshow" when a guest brought the first model of the iPhone ever produced. "Somewhat of a first here on the Antiques Roadshow," expert Jamie Russell remarked after admiring the first-generation technology.

Russell refused to acknowledge the tech collection as an antique. "Not something that we can necessarily call antiques," he said. He referred to them as "collectibles of the future" and additionally labeled the gentleman's obsession with the Apple products as an "expensive hobby." When asked how he acquired such a large collection, the middle-aged man confessed that he was addicted. "It started, basically, with the first iPhone and it’s got completely out of control over the last few years. I don’t know if this has been a good idea or if this is a terrible idea," the guest remarked. 

Russell then explained how old telephones were now being sold as collectibles and art work at elite auctions, "Back 80 years, we had Bakelite ring dial telephones. As time has gone on, they have become works of art and very collectable and have been selling it auction and doing quite well," he said referring to their popularity with art buyers and dealers. "So, you’ve got in at the forefront of what will be one of the biggest collectables in the future," the antique expert revealed.

The gentleman showed great interest in knowing the deal price for his first 16GB iPhone, however, Russell  described it as "not the absolute rarest." The expert remained clueless about the actual market value of the 4GB and 8GB iPhones as well. 

However, he disclosed that the American market was a hotbed for such collections of gadgets. There are levels of scarcity. Now, they are starting to come up in specialist auctions. The original 4GB was recently sold for more than $50,000 at an auction in America. So, there’s an appetite there for these things. Instead of providing a specific number for the unique collection, Russell encouraged the guest to stay optimistic for a lucrative deal in the future. According to him, valuing the gentleman's collection "at this time" would be impossible. "But, you’ve got in at the exact right spot," he told the man. "You’re definitely on to a winner and I think you’ll have a great sale whenever they do some in the future," he added. 

As per The Guardian, tech enthusiasts are already making a beeline to acquire these old models. In 2023, a 1st-Gen 4GB iPhone was sold for a whopping $190,372.80 during LCG Auctions. The Apple device was described as a “popular high-end collectible” and “exceedingly rare.” The auction house revealed that another first-generation iPhone fetched $63,356. Wright Auctions confirmed that it sold a first-generation iPhone for $40,320.