The iPhone changed many people's lives. It was the first mobile device to be considered a smart phone and it changed the world of technology in 2007 when it was released. There are more than a few people who, since then, have been collecting one model after another up until the current iPhone 14. Karen Green went one step further and kept it unopened and in its original box. That decision could be the reason the woman gets $50,000 or more for the device.
This is not the original price that the phone designed by Steve Jobs sold for back when it was originally released, but rather the value that, according to the auction house in charge of the sale, LSG Auctions, the device could be worth. Back when it came on the market, it sold for $599.
Gift from friends
In fact, that’s how much her friends spent on this first-generation iPhone with a 2-megapixel camera and 8 GB of storage. The cell phone was a gift to Karen from friends when she landed a management position at PetSmart.
However, Business Insider reports that Green had recently purchased a phone and, in addition, the Apple cell phone was not compatible Verizon, where she had three lines at the time (at that time iPhones could only be used with AT&T). Green decided to leave the cell phone on a shelf for years, unopened and unused. In addition, the site recalls, she left it "wrapped in a pair of felt pajamas" to keep it safe.
She is selling the iPhone to support her business
That's where the tattoo artist kept it for years. According to The Guardian, in October, Green learned that a first-generation iPhone, a model identical to hers, had sold for $39,339.60 at LCG Auctions so she decided to test her luck. The tattoo artist contacted the auction house and that's how it all began, as the company's founder, Mark Montero, recalls during his conversation with Business Insider:
We got calls from everybody, but 99% of them didn't have the same thing. But Karen had a really unique piece with a great story behind it. It was shocking because we had gotten so many duds.
The auction began on Thursday, February 2. With a starting price of $2,500, this item is currently going for $11,491. Bidding will continue until next February 19 when Karen Green will see if her first-generation iPhone fetches the $50,000 price tag.
For the moment, the artist says, she already knows what she will use the money from the sale for: to run her cosmetic tattoo studio called Tattician, located in New Jersey:
It took me almost a year to get it up and running, and when you don't have an income for a year because you don't have a place to work and you're trying to get out on your own, your resources start to go. If I could hold off on the phone for like another 10 years, I probably would. The only reason why I'm selling that phone is because I need to support this business.
