What your old computers and games consoles are worth today
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Old tech worth serious money
Got an old computer or games console from way back when gathering dust in your attic or basement? Whether it's seen some heavy use over the years or is still box-fresh, it could be worth a tidy sum.
Read on to discover the prices some collectors will pay for classic items of tech in 2024.
All dollar amounts in US dollars.
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Nintendo Donkey Kong Game & Watch
Almost everyone of a certain age owned one of these Nintendo Donkey Kong platform handhelds in the 1980s. The dinky dual-screen console retailed for around $100 (£80) in today's money. If you're lucky enough to have one stashed away that still works, you'll be pleased to learn a complete used console can sell for around $245 (£189), according to Price Charting, while an unused one could fetch nearer $450 (£347).
Meanwhile, a special edition version of the console sold for a record-breaking $9,000 (£6.9k) in 2021.
Rama/Wikimedia Commons [CC BY-SA 2.0 FR]
Amstrad CPC 464
More than two million units of this classic PC from UK firm Amstrad were sold in Europe during the 1980s. These days, the all-in-one home computer, which has nifty coloured special keys, can be found on eBay for up to $450 (£350) including games.
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Nintendo Game Boy Color Ozzie! Ozzie! Ozzie!
A must-have for late 1990s and early 2000s kids, Nintendo released 55 colour variations of its super-popular Game Boy Color handheld, including Grape (pictured). The device cost $69.99, around $166 (£128) in 2024 money, but an Australian exclusive – the green and yellow Ozzie! Ozzie! Ozzie! – is among the most valuable these days.
A boxed console in full working order has previously fetched $708 (£545) on eBay.
Evan-Amos/Wikimedia Commons [Public domain]
Coleco Industries ColecoVision
Coleco Industries was the American company that manufactured Cabbage Patch Kids dolls, a major 1980s craze. It also made games consoles, including the ColecoVision, which was released in 1982 and sold over two million units.
The original RRP was $175, which is over $520 (£400) in today's money. These days, unused boxed examples can sell for as much as $1,000 (£770), according to Price Charting.
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Commodore PET 2001
American company Commodore's first mass-market PC, the PET 2001 hit stores in 1977. It originally cost $795, over $4,000 (£3.1k) in today's money, so it didn't come cheap.
The PC was widely criticised at the time for its tiny chiclet keyboard, which was difficult to use. Today, working models are listed on eBay for up to $1,160 (£900).
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Nintendo Super Nintendo
The Super Nintendo console, aka the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), topped countless Christmas lists in the early 1990s. It retailed for $199, over $450 (£345) in 2024 money. In total, a jaw-dropping 49.1 million units were sold worldwide.
Today, a used version is listed on eBay for around $100 (£77) but according to Price Charting, you could expect to bank over $180 (£139) for certain types of controllers alone if they're unused.
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Sinclair ZX Spectrum
Launched in 1982, the ZX Spectrum was the UK's number one home PC during the early to mid-decade. A favourite among vintage PC collectors, pristine boxed examples sell for up to $900 (£695).
If you have a used model squirrelled away, it could be worth up to $200 (£155), although most fetch closer to $100 (£77).
Nintendo Game Boy Micro Mother 3 Deluxe
Certain limited editions of Nintendo's Game Boy Micro, released relatively recently in 2005, are worth big bucks. The Mother 3 Deluxe edition was only available in Japan and retailed for $160, around $210 (£162) in today's money.
Nowadays, collectors will pay big money to get their hands on one – a boxed example is currently listed on eBay for just over $1,900 (£1.5k).
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IBM 5150
The IBM 5150, aka the IBM Personal Computer, is credited with popularising the term 'PC'. It was released in 1981 and sold in the hundreds of thousands despite the retail price, which was high at $1,565, over $5,000 (£3.9k) in today's money.
Though working models aren't in short supply, some are listed for over $700 (£540) on eBay.
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Nintendo Game Boy Pocket Emerald Green
As is the case with other Game Boy handhelds, the Game Boy Pocket, which is smaller and lighter than the original, came in a number of colour variations.
Released in 1996, the rarest is the fabled emerald green, which is a Japan-only Toys “R” Us limited edition and glows in the dark, though even the more common red versions (pictured) can fetch big sums; according to Price Charting, an unused version could net you at least $1,000 (£770).
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Sega Mega Drive 2
One of the most popular games consoles of all time, the Sega Mega Drive 2 (known as the Genesis in North America), came out in 1993 and retailed for $149.99, around $322 (£250) in today's money. It was a smaller, lighter version of the original console.
Rare special editions are worth the most money these days. Boxed examples of the FIFA 96 Australia/New Zealand version, for instance, have sold for as much as $1,200 (£925), while Price Charting claims the special edition 'Aladdin bundle' is worth up to $1,026 (£790).
Evan-Amos/Wikimedia Commons[Public domain]
Commodore 64
The best-selling single computer model of all time, the Commodore 64 debuted in 1982 and shifted 17 million units. The original RRP was $595, over $1,900 (£1.5k) in today's money.
Although existing examples are ubiquitous, they still fetch several hundred dollars, with Price Charting reporting they're worth up to $700 (£540) new.
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Original Nintendo Game Boy
You may have fond memories of playing on your Game Boy, but you probably wish you'd left it unopened in the box now. When the game-changing handheld was released in 1989, it retailed at $89.95, which works out at around $225 (£173) in 2024 money.
But a factory-sealed example is worth around $1,200 (£925) these days, according to Price Charting, while one used model has recently been listed on eBay for close to $3,900 (£3k).
Rama/Wikimedia Commons [CC BY-SA 2.0 FR]
IMSAI 8080
The first real clone computer, the IMSAI 8080 mimicked the iconic MITS Altair 8800. Released in 1975, it was priced at a budget-busting $600, which is $3,460 (£2.7k) in today's money.
A must-have for collectors, the machine had a starring role as a hacking device in the 1983 movie WarGames. If you have one in storage that works, Reader's Digest reported in 2022 that it could be worth around $1,800 (£1.4k).
Evan-Amos/Wikimedia Commons [Public domain]
Atari 2600
The world's first mass-market games console, the Atari 2600, aka the Atari VCS, was launched in 1977 priced at $199, which is almost $3,500 (£2.7k) in today's money. Though millions were sold, very few factory-sealed models remain, and some collectors will pay several thousand dollars for one. Meanwhile, used models typically sell for up to $200 (£154).
Evan-Amos/Wikimedia Commons[Public domain]
NEC Home Electronic/Hudson Soft TurboDuo
This North American exclusive was released in 1992. Boasting a CD-ROM drive, it was considered rather expensive at the time, retailing initially for $299, the equivalent of $660 (£510) today.
Eclipsed by the Sega Genesis, the TurboDuo was something of a flop, but the lack of sales actually boosts its value today, which is anything up to around $2,000 (£1.5k) for a pristine working model.
Evan-Amos/Wikimedia Commons [Public domain]
Sega Genesis Model 1
Remember spending hours playing Sonic the Hedgehog? More than 30 million units of the Sega Genesis console, known as the Sega Mega Drive in Europe, were sold during the 1990s. The release price in 1989 was $189, which is $473 (£364) today.
The original Sega Genesis 1 is rarer, and a factory-sealed model in its box sold for $2,075 (£1.6k) on eBay in recent years. Used working models, however, go for nearer $200 (£155).
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Apple Macintosh 128K
The original Apple Mac PC, the 128K was released in 1984 and introduced to the American public by a spectacular Ridley Scott-directed Super Bowl commercial, which has gone down in advertising history.
The PC sold tens of thousands of units despite the $2,495 price tag, which works out at almost $7,500 (£5.8k) in today's money. A used working model with collectible magazines from 1984 and 2004 has been listed on eBay for $2,478 (£1.9k).
Flibble/Wikimedia Commons [CC BY-SA 3.0]
Acorn System 1
An early 8-bit computer aimed at hobbyists, the System 1 was manufactured by British firm Acorn. It was designed by Cambridge University undergraduate Sophie Wilson and Professor Steve Furber, and released in 1979.
Working models of the vintage computer, which is revered by collectors, can sell for up to $2,550 (£2k) these days.
Sony PlayStation 2 European Automobile Color Collection
This limited-edition Sony PlayStation 2 console was restricted to just 2,000 models per colour. As a result, pristine boxed examples sell for a small fortune.
Collectors have been known to pay more than $5,000 (£3.9k) to get hold of one of the brightly-hued consoles, which retailed for a fraction of that price.
Sega Dreamcast Divers 2000 CX-1
Highly sought-after by collectors in the know, this ultra-rare limited-edition Sega Dreamcast was released in 2000. Available only in Japan, it wows with a swish Sonic the Hedgehog monitor by Fuji.
Mint condition models in the original box can sell for over $5,000 (£3.9k) today.
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Apple Lisa
A commercial failure, the Apple Lisa was launched in 1983 with a 5MB hard drive and was one of the first PCs marketed to business customers.
It retailed at an eye-watering $9,995, which is over $31,000 (£24k) in today's money, about the same price as a family car. Very few survive to this day, and working models sell for sky-high prices, as much as $50,000 (£38.5k) in some instances.
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Commodore 65
The Commodore 65 was designed as the successor to the bestselling 64. It was backwards compatible with the former model while incorporating advanced Amiga features. It was never officially released, but when Commodore went bust in 1994, between 200 and 1,000 units made it onto the open market.
Today, these mythical prototypes are worth up to $70,000 (£54k) apiece – if you can get your hands on one.
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Apple I
Apple's very first product, the appropriately named Apple I was designed and assembled by Steve Wozniak back in 1976. Steve Jobs sold his hippie van to cover the manufacturing costs. Only 200 units were produced and they each sold for a symbolic $666.66, which is over $3,600 (£2.8k) in today's money.
Today, just 63 are known to exist, and only eight are in full working order. The most valuable of the bunch went under the hammer for an incredible $905,000 at a Bonhams auction in 2014, the equivalent of almost $1.2 million (£924k) in 2024.
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