Working Apple-1 Signed by Steve Wozniak Heads to Bonhams

A rare, working Apple-1 computer signed by Steve Wozniak goes to auction at Bonhams in New York this October, with an estimate of $500,000 to $800,000.

The machine, known as the "Hatfield" Apple-1 after its original owner, Fred Hatfield, headlines Bonhams' History of Science, Technology & Computing sale, which runs online from October 4 through October 14. The lot includes a 1978 letter signed by Steve Jobs offering Hatfield a trade-in for an Apple II.

Wozniak built the Apple-1 in 1976. It was Apple's first product and a pivotal step in the development of the personal computer. Unlike many competing machines of the era, it shipped with a fully assembled motherboard and integrated video output. According to Bonhams, fewer than 75 verified Apple-1 computers are known to survive, and even fewer remain operational.

The Hatfield machine is listed as No. 48 on the Apple-1 Registry. Hatfield, then an employee of Computer Data Systems, bought the computer during Apple's early days. He later wrote to the company about the limited software available for the machine. Jobs replied in 1978, offering a trade-in for the recently released Apple II. Hatfield declined and kept the original.

Wozniak later signed the motherboard. The lot therefore carries the marks of both of Apple's co-founders.

"The Apple-1 stands among the most important milestones in computing history, and the 'Hatfield' example is among the most compelling surviving examples," Ian Ehling, Bonhams' director of Fine Books & Manuscripts in North America, said in a statement.

The sale falls in Apple's 50th anniversary year. Bonhams will also offer several other pieces of early Apple hardware: an Apple Lisa 1 estimated at $50,000 to $80,000, an Apple Paladin prototype estimated at $40,000 to $60,000, and a clear-plastic prototype Macintosh Portable estimated at $10,000 to $15,000.

The Apple-1 will be on view at Bonhams in San Francisco from September 30 through October 1 before traveling to New York, where it will be displayed from October 4 through October 14.