A rare Apple I signed by Steve Wozniak has sold for $1,148,200, setting a record for the model at auction. The machine, known as the “Hatfield” Apple I, was built in 1976 and first sold for $666.60 to Fred Hatfield.
The result came after bidding narrowed to two people, who pushed the price past the expected top range of $800,000. The computer had been publicized last month and displayed in New York before the auction, giving collectors a chance to see one of the few surviving Apple I machines that still works.
A rare piece of early Apple history
Only 74 verified Apple I models remain, and the Hatfield machine is one of the few still in working condition. Its rarity helped drive the bidding, but its history gave the auction lot a personal connection to Apple’s earliest days.
The computer carries Steve Wozniak’s signature and comes from the period when Apple was offering its first product. Ian Ehling, a Bonhams representative, described the sale as a major result for the machine.
“We are delighted with this exceptional result for the ‘Hatfield’ Apple I, one of the most important milestones in computing history,” Ehling said. “It was an honor to offer Apple’s first product during the company’s 50th anniversary year.”
The Apple I itself was a basic machine by modern standards. This model came with 8KB of RAM and a MOS Technology 6502 microprocessor, and it could run Apple Integer Basic along with a few games through the optional Apple Cassette Interface.
It also did not come with a power supply, keyboard, or monitor. Those pieces were included in the auction lot, along with a custom power supply, a period monitor, and keyboards, allowing the collection to represent more of what was needed to use the computer.
From a $40,000 sale to a million-dollar auction
The lot included more than the computer and its accessories. It also contained a letter from Steve Jobs encouraging an upgrade to the Apple II, the original Apple I operation manual, a cassette operating manual, and an invitation to join the Apple I Owners Club.
Hatfield declined the upgrade offer and later sold the machine for $40,000. He used the money to pay for dinners and nights out in New Orleans, a detail that stands out against the machine’s value today.
“I figure I might as well enjoy the money I got from that old machine,” Hatfield said.
The computer returned to auction in 2013, when the same machine sold for $671,400. Its new result of $1,148,200 marks a major rise from that sale and shows how much interest has gathered around the earliest Apple hardware.
The Hatfield Apple I is not valuable because it offers the power or convenience expected from a modern computer. Its appeal comes from its small place in a much larger story: a working early machine, signed by Wozniak, connected to Hatfield, Jobs, and the first years of Apple.
That combination made the auction more than a sale of old hardware. It turned a computer bought for $666.60 into a record-setting piece of technology history.
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