11 retro gadgets that are worth a lot today

Shoppers standing in line for hours or even days to get their hands on the latest gadget has become a ritual among technophiles. On the other end of the spectrum are people who crave retro gear.

Retro devices appeal to collectors with a sense of nostalgia, not to mention bragging rights. Another reason for the demand for retro technologies is their potential resale value. When you see how much these gadgets are worth, you will search attics and basements for long-forgotten treasures.

1. Apple I

Steve Wozniak designed the first Apple I computer in 1975 and sold it the following year for $666.66. Despite its outdated computer technology, the device is considered a collector’s item.

In 2014, a buyer purchased an Apple I at auction for $905,000. And you thought today’s Macs were expensive. This is a bargain compared to the current price of the Apple I.

2. iPhone I

Always innovative, Apple shook up the mobile phone market when it released the iPhone I in 2007. Despite the $599 price tag, the first generation iPhone sold in the millions. Apple didn’t keep the 4GB phone on the market for very long, making devices in unopened factory packaging extremely rare and valuable.

In 2023, a brand new, original iPhone sold at auction for over $190,000. Even used models can sell for over $1,000.

3. Super Mario 64 game cartridge

Fans of the Nintendo gaming system know better than anyone that Mario games are readily available at a variety of price points. But in the summer of 2021, a bidder won a rare, factory-sealed example Super Mario 64 Nintendo 64 game cartridge at auction for $1,560,000. This sale makes it the most expensive video game in history. There is a lucrative market for unopened classic games.

4. VHS tapes

If you or your family have had a VCR since the 1980s, you probably still have a few VHS tapes in your home. If so, check your tapes before throwing them in the trash.

Certain titles, such as Disney movies, are highly sought after by nostalgia seekers. At the 2022 auction, buyers won a copy of the 1985 film Back to the future for $75,000.

5. TRS-80 laptop

One of the earliest portable computers was the TRS-80 laptop, which sold at auction for $25,000. This particular piece of technology was unique because it was personally used by Bill Gates, the founder of Microsoft, who used it to write code.

The TRS-80 is more than just a collector’s item; it’s also a piece of history.

6. Vintage Leica camera

In the United States, Kodak, Polaroid, Canon and Nikon are well known for their cameras and photographic equipment. The German company Leica may not be widely known, but it went down in history as one of the first companies to mass-produce 35 mm cameras.

Older Leica cameras are so hard to come by that one was bought at auction in 2022 for $15 million.

7. Nintendo PlayStation prototype

Like originally packaged video games, brand new video game systems sell for a higher price, especially if they were limited edition. Before it became the Sony PlayStation, the manufacturer of the Nintendo PlayStation built only 200 prototypes for sale.

A fan purchased the unopened system at auction in 2020 for $360,000. Limited release games and gaming systems can be worth a lot of money if left unused.

8. Toshiba laptop

Anyone who has purchased laptops in recent decades knows that Toshiba computers are readily available online and in large retail stores. However, at one auction in 2014, one Toshiba laptop was sold for almost $62,000. The reason for the high price?

In 1998, then-President Bill Clinton used the device to send an email to astronaut John Glenn on the space shuttle Discovery, making him the first president to send an email into space.

9. Special edition iPod

The Apple iPod revolutionized the way users listened to music on the go, but it eventually became obsolete with the advent of smartphones like the iPhone. Collectors interested in vintage iPods can find them online from private sellers and third-party vendors for a few to several hundred dollars.

The real money is in limited-edition iPods like the X-Files iPod Nano and the U2 Edition, for which someone paid nearly $90,000.

10. Komodor 64

For baby boomers and Gen Xers, the name Commodore 64 should bring back memories of 1982, when the home computer system hit the market. Despite the popularity of its devices at the time, the company went bankrupt in the 1990s.

A Commodore 64 in pristine condition is currently worth over $1,200.

11. Apple Newton PDA

You’d be forgiven if you haven’t heard of the Apple Newton PDA. Apple attempted to create and market a personal digital assistant (PDA) in 1993. The device is a rare misstep for the tech giant, but despite its lack of adoption, it has value for some users.

At a 2022 auction, a buyer bid more than $800 for a working version of the Apple Newton.