Which machines have held or grown their value?

[zombienerd]

Are there any vintage computers that would cost more now than they did brand new?

Looking back at $3000-5000 price tags on vintage early 80's iron, I have a hard time believing that any of these machines would bring more than their original sticker price (not even counting inflation).

I was just curious if there were any unicorns out there that manage to regularly sell for more than their original sticker.

 

[krebizfan]

I doubt you will find any TS-1000 for the $10 clearance price. Many look to be offered for more than the $100 that Timex optimistically hoped for. I think Jupiter Ace, Commodore Plus 4, and other limited production failures that sold at low, low prices would manage the feat.

Apple Twiggy Lisa sometimes exceeds $10,000 so that probably qualifies.

I have seen 5150s inexplicably go for about $2000 so depending on add-on cards it might actually exceed the original sticker.

 

[PeterNC]

Whether case expansions / cards are included/excluded is a good question. I guess you would have to add the price of expansions / cards to the base MSRP to really determine value.

 

[SiliconClassics]

This boxed Mac Color Classic II sold on eBay for $2,000 in 2012 - that's significantly more than the original retail price. And if memory serves me correctly, a boxed Color Classic sold recently on eBay for around $1,300 (can't find the completed listing), which is pretty much what it cost new. So for Color Classics at least, the price seems to have climbed up the opposite side of the bathtub curve to the point where it meets or exceeds original retail price, assuming it's in the original box and not accounting for inflation.

 

[PeterNC]

Apple products have the Jobs halo. Very few other products come even near.

 

[1ST1]

Since a year or so you can't find Atari Falcon 030 in eBay below of 1200 Eur/Dollars. This is roughly the price it was sold in 1992 (2400 DM). Falcon's price might increase again in the future.

 

[NeXT]

Yeah outside of my number of Apple and NeXT machines (and my Amiga 500, 2000 and 3000, because Amiga people are financially insane) my PC stuff has mainly remained the same for value. I think some of my SGI hardware is hitting the other side of the bathtub but be damned if the Sun hardware is still worth no more than I paid for it seven years ago.

My one GRiDCase 2 series might be worth a bit more but everyone wants the fancy plasma screen and not my rot prone LCD type.

 

[tempest]

Since a year or so you can't find Atari Falcon 030 in eBay below of 1200 Eur/Dollars. This is roughly the price it was sold in 1992 (2400 DM). Falcon's price might increase again in the future.

I remember when they were $300 or so. I had one and sold it because it wasn't all that interesting to me. Wish I had kept it now.

 

[Rick Ethridge]

Amiga computers or parts thereof.

 

[KC9UDX]

Amigas and accessories are the only thing that I can think of that qualifies. Everything else I can think of that's worth a lot now was hard to give away at some point.

 

[Unknown_K]

I think some PC add-on cards might be approaching their original selling prices by now (VLB video controllers).

Some gear like the C64 had quite a few price drops from when they first started selling to their last gasp in retail, which ones do we use?

 

[Unknown_K]

Amigas and accessories are the only thing that I can think of that qualifies. Everything else I can think of that's worth a lot now was hard to give away at some point.

Amiga gear in the early 2000's was pretty cheap compared to now so even that stuff could have been hard to get rid off at some point.

 

[KC9UDX]

Amiga gear in the early 2000's was pretty cheap compared to now so even that stuff could have been hard to get rid off at some point.

Compared to now, yes, but I don't recall a time where anything Amiga-related went cheap. By hard to get rid of, I mean like either having to throw in the trash or pay someone to take. If you couldn't put a Rev 0 Apple ][, Chicklet PET, or IBM 5150 in your trash in the early nineties, you either had to pay someone to take it or get rid of it illegally. (At that point though, 5150s were already collectible and you could probably get $25 for one.)

 

[MindThreat]

Since a year or so you can't find Atari Falcon 030 in eBay below of 1200 Eur/Dollars. This is roughly the price it was sold in 1992 (2400 DM). Falcon's price might increase again in the future.

I'm getting a C-Lab Mk.2 loaded with Cubase and goodies for $1,900 so yeah, definitely increasing in value. Thing is in pristine condition though and the C-Labs are even harder to come by than the original Falcon.