The original Apple-I computer that works gets $ 375,000 in an auction

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An Apple-I computer, the first product manufactured by the computer giant, was auctioned for $ 375,000 (£ 230,000).

The machine was designed by Steve Wozniak, known as Woz, the co-founder of Apple.

His trading partner, Steve Jobs, convinced him to pack and sell the machine; put on sale in 1976 for $ 666.66.

This is one of the few models in operation to exist today.

"The Apple-I was terribly weak in power compared to the Apple-II," Wozniak said in an email to the BBC on Tuesday.

"But this Apple-I computer has shown the world the formula of a useful and affordable computer."

"Behave like it was in 1976"
The auction was held in Boston, Massachusetts on Tuesday. The buyer was an "anonymous entrepreneur" who made his offer online.

It is estimated that Mr. Wozniak and Mr. Jobs sold about 200 Apple-I computers in just under a year, thanks to an agreement with a local computer store in Palo Alto, California.

According to an online registry, not affiliated with Apple, there are only 79 computers available.

"Never outside the book" - How Apple-I was built

By Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple, in conversation with the BBC

"The Apple-I device was an important device that was quickly removed from a terminal of its own manufacturer." The terminal (keyboard and TV) was created to access the Arpanet long-distance network and could only handle 60 bytes of data per second. Because of the speed of the modem, while the microprocessor could access 100,000 bytes of data per second, the Apple had a formidable power compared to the Apple-II, but this Apple-I showed the world, starting by members of the Homebrew Computer Club, the formula of an affordable computer.

"I gave my creations for free at Homebrew Computer Club." My belief in the way computers could help with education led me to beg Steve Jobs to give the first Apple-I to a woman from our club, Liza Loop, the first Apple - I'll probably go to theaters of elementary school class to show students what a computer is, Steve forced me to buy it (for us) for $ 300 and I gave it to Liza.

"We could have made 150 Apple I plates." Steve Jobs managed the Apple-I business and we created a bank account of about $ 12,000. It was my idea to put the price at $ 666.66. Very few of these plates are known. this scarcity gives them great value.

"It's fair to say that Apple-I was the first personal computer, according to the definition of" personal. "Apple-I and Apple-II took steps that had never been taken before.

"That's how I did things, never out of the book."

"Our experts tell us that there are 15 in the world that work properly, that it can be improved and behave as if it were in 1976. It's pretty fantastic."

The Apple-I occupies a place in the history of technology as the first computer that requires no assembly, except the connection of a monitor and a keyboard.

Ive Award
The Apple-I only gave a glimpse of what was coming. Wozniak's follow-up, the Apple-II lineup, has sold more than 5 million units, making Apple the most valuable company in US history.

In August, Apple's value exceeded $ 1 billion for the first time, thanks to iPhone sales.

British designer Sir Jony Ive, who with Mr. Jobs designed the iPhone, was announced Tuesday as the winner of Professor Hawking's scholarship by the Cambridge Union.

The scholarship program was created in 2017 to celebrate the legacy of Professor Stephen Hawking, who passed away in March.

As part of the stock exchange, Sir Jony will travel to Cambridge Union on a date that has not yet been made public.

"The Hawking Committee believes that Sir Jony's work and patents have played a key role in Apple's success over the past two decades," said the Cambridge Union.

"His indisputable technological experience, as well as his outstanding role in defending an elegant and innovative design on the world stage, made Sir Jony particularly qualified to receive this scholarship."