With the drop of the iPhone 15, it seems like technology is becoming obsolete faster and faster, but that doesn’t always mean it loses value.
Earlier this week, DailyMail.com revealed the 10 most sought-after cult classic VHS tapes, which are selling for thousands of dollars on eBay.
Now we’ve delved into other semi-vintage technologies up for auction and discovered that consumers can make a handsome profit on products collecting dust in their attic, as long as they have the original packaging.
These forgotten devices included a first-generation iPod that sells for $60,000 and a 1996 Tamagotchi that sells for up to $3,500.
Here are five gadgets you can make a small (or big) fortune with if you’re willing to part ways:
DailyMail.com delved into old technologies up for auction and found that consumers can make handsome profits on products collecting dust in their attic, as long as they have the original packaging.
These forgotten devices include a first-generation iPod that costs $60,000
First generation iPod: $60,000
Apple launched the first iPod on October 23, 2001, eight years before the launch of the first iPhone.
The device changed the way people listened to music, as they no longer had to carry around many CDs to listen to their favorite songs.
Instead, the iPod stored 1,000 songs that could be played randomly with a swipe.
A first-generation iPod from 2001 still sealed in its box sold at auction early last month for $29,000 in a private sale.
One of the first generation iPods sells for $60,000 on eBay
On eBay, some first-generation iPods are listed for about twice that price, and the current highest price is $60,000 for a factory-sealed first-generation iPod Classic.
Tamagotchi: $3,500
These digital pets that you had to remember to feed to keep them alive appeared in 1996 in Japan before arriving in the US less than a year later. The egg-shaped device cost about $18 at the time.
After a digital creature is born, users must care for their virtual pet as it progresses through the different stages of life.
Users have to feed him (either a “meal,” which consists of a bowl of rice or a “snack” of sweets) and clean him after he goes to the bathroom.
If not properly cared for, the pet will become ill and even die.
These digital pets that you had to remember to feed to keep them alive appeared in 1996 in Japan before arriving in the US less than a year later. The egg-shaped device cost about $18 at the time.
Creator Bandai revived the adorable digital pet in 2018 for around $20, but the originals are being auctioned off for a high price.
A set of two Tamagotchi keychains sells on eBay for $3,500.
The wearable digital pets are now returning with updated colorful graphics, the option to wear them on a watch band, and the ability to connect with Tamagotchi users around the world who are also in the ‘Tamaverse’.
Game Boy Pocket Limited Edition Ice Blue: $3,500
Nintendo’s Gameboy Pocket Ice Blue was released on September 3, 1996 for about $90. But eBay has one for $3,500.
Nintendo is undoubtedly one of the most popular gaming device manufacturers of all time, with its Game Boys line listed on eBay for between $100 and $18,000.
A limited-edition ice blue Game Boy Pocket, the first redesigned version of the Gameboy, which went on sale in 1996, is listed on eBay for $3,500, while a kiwi-colored one is listed for nearly $18,000.
Nintendo’s Gameboy Pocket Ice Blue was released on September 3, 1996 for about $90.
Unlike the Gameboy, the pocket version was smaller and had a lighter form factor.
Nintendo 64 Pokémon Stadium Battle Game: $1,800
Nintendo 64 Pokemon Stadium Battle Set allows users to view their Pokémon battles in 3D and control the digital creature like a portable game from the main series.
A Pokémon-themed Nintendo 64 is selling on eBay for $1,799.99.
The Nintendo 64 came out in June 1996 in Japan and in September of that year in the United States.
The one up for auction on eBay includes the game itself, two controllers, the transfer pack, and the original box.
The console allows users to view their Pokémon battles in 3D and control the digital creature as if it were a handheld game from the main series.
Motorola Dynatac 8000x: $55,519
One of these phones is listed on eBay for more than $55,000
The product includes the charging base and carrying bag.
On April 3, 1973, Motorola employee Martin Cooper called New York with a Motorola DynaTAC 8000X, widely considered the first public call from a mobile phone.
The device is also said to be the world’s first portable mobile phone, weighing 1.75 pounds.
DynaTAC was a series of mobile phones from Microsoft between 1983 and 1994.
The DynaTAC 8000x was the first model in the line and offered 30 minutes of talk time. It was the first mobile phone offered commercially.
One of these mobile phones is listed on eBay for more than $55,000, including the charging base and carrying bag.
vhs tapes
You could be sitting on a treasure trove of valuable children’s movies.
Streaming has replaced trips to the video store, but VHS tapes are becoming a hot commodity among collectors.
Classics like Back to the Future and cult films like the original Fast and Furious are selling for thousands on eBay.
But before you run out to the garage or rummage through the attic, be careful: the condition of these tapes is key to their selling price.
Sorry, that copy of ‘Aladdin’ you watched 50,000 times as a kid is a flop.
eBay claims that around 250,000 VHS tapes are sold on the online sales platform each year.
Additionally, he revealed that eBay buyers had spent more than $3 million on VHS tapes.
