Functioning Apple-1 computer sells for $375,000 at auction

One of the first Apple computers ever made has fetched $375,000 (£285,000) at auction.

The device was snapped up by an anonymous online buyer during a sale at Boston-based RR Auctions yesterday - significantly beating the estimated target price of $300,000 (£230,000).

The Apple-1 was originally conceived by company co-founders Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak in 1976 as a bare circuit board for programming enthusiasts.

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But under the advice of Paul Terrell, owner of one of the world’s first computer shops, the pair decided to sell the device as a fully assembled kit in a bid to reach a wider audience.

Speaking to the BBC, Wozniak says that he and Jobs “might have made 150 Apple-1 boards”, each priced at $666.66 (£506.88).

“It’s fair to say that the Apple-I was the first personal computer, depending on how you define personal. The Apple-1 and Apple-2 took steps that had never been taken before,” Wozniak added.

Only around 60 examples of the Apple-1 are believed to be in existence today, says CNet. The company offered a discount to customers if they traded in their Apple-1 computer for a second-generation model, and many of the old devices were then destroyed.

The newly sold model is especially rare, as one of just 15 remaining Apple-1 computers that are in working order, according to RR Auction’s Bobby Livingston.

The device was restored by Apple-1 expert Corey Cohn in June, MacRumors reports.