I sometimes get asked what Apple devices and collectibles I’m looking to acquire. It’s usually easier for me to answer whether or not I’m interested in a particular item than for me to attempt to list particular devices. However, this list represents some Apple devices that I would likely wish to obtain if one became readily available.
Apple TV (original, 2007)
When Apple released the first Apple TV on March 21, 2007, it was described as “an easy to use and fun way to wirelessly play all your favorite iTunes content from your PC or Mac on your widescreen TV, including movies, TV shows, music, photos and podcasts.”
Phil Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing at the time, described Apple TV as “a DVD player for the Internet age—providing an easy and fun way to play all your favorite iTunes content from your PC or Mac on your widescreen TV…using your existing WiFi network.”
This original Apple TV used an Intel processor and included 256 MB DDR2 SDRAM and a 40 or 160 GB hard drive. Apple reported that 40 GB Apple TV could hold up to 50 hours of movies and TV shows (H.264, 1.5-Mbps video, 128-Kbps audio). The 160 GB version quadrupled the storage. The video output was limited to a maximum of 720p.
Connectivity included HDMI, component video and audio, optical audio, 10/100Base-T Ethernet, and a USB 2.0 port (for service and diagnostics). It included 802.11n wireless networking.
This Apple TV originally required a Mac to access content. However, on January 15, 2008, “Apple unveiled a software update that made it possible to rent movies directly from the Apple TV without using a separate computer.”
This Apple TV used a design unique among later iterations. It was white with silver edges and had a light gray base. It measured 7.7 x 7.7 inches square with rounded corners, it was 1.1 inches high, and weighed 2.4 pounds.
Sources: Apple (newsroom, technical specifications), EveryMac
iPod shuffle (original, 1 GB, 2005)
The iPod shuffle was introduced on January 11, 2005, as the “First iPod Under $100” (the 512 MB version sold for $99 and this 1 GB version sold for $149). Apple described the device in a press release as a “breakthrough digital music player based on iPod’s legendary shuffle feature which lets users experience their music in a million different ways. Smaller and lighter than a pack of gum, iPod shuffle comes with its own lanyard so it’s ready to wear right out of the box.”
The original iPod shuffle featured 512 MB or 1 GB of flash memory in a 3.3 x 0.98 x 0.33-inch case with an integrated USB connector. Like all iPod shuffle models that would come after it, it lacked a display. The name “shuffle” refers to its ability to shuffle—play in a random order—among the 120 or 240 songs it is capable of storing.
Like other iPod models, the iPod shuffle could be used to store files other than music files, a feature that worked particularly well on this device with its integrated USB plug.
The original iPod shuffle shipped with a white lanyard, a cap, and earbuds.
USB-C to USB Adapter (2015)
Apple’s USB-C to USB Adapter is a “dongle-style” adapter that allows older USB-A devices to be converted to USB-C or Thunderbolt 3. Apple described the adapter:
“The USB-C to USB Adapter lets you connect iOS devices and many of your standard USB accessories to a USB-C or Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) enabled Mac, iPad, or iPhone. Plug the USB-C end of the adapter into a USB-C or Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) port on your Mac, iPad, or iPhone, and then connect your flash drive, camera, or other standard USB device. You can also connect a Lightning to USB cable to sync and charge your iPhone, iPad, or iPod.”
According to Apple, it “supports data-transfer speeds up to 5Gbps (USB 3.1 Gen 1).” Further, you may “Use the USB-A port of this adapter with flash drives, cameras, USB hubs, and other devices that connect to USB-A for data transfer or charging.”
Source: Apple (product, support)
Apple Employee Outdoor Run shirt (c. 2020)
This shirt was made available to selected Apple employees who are running enthusiasts. The shirt is made by SUGOi, a Canadian sportswear company that “offers a range of technically advanced clothing and accessories for all conditions and for everyone.”
The shirt is black and made from a textured fabric with a lining. The small front design is printed over the heart and features a red heart similar to the Heart Rate section in the Health app printed with “160 BPM.” The back of the shirt features a striking design with “Outdoor Run” printed at the bottom using a font and layout similar to the Apple Watch Activity app with the Activity rings printed below in matching colors. Eight bright green vertical stripes run from the bottom logo to the top neckline.
The left sleeve features an Apple logo, and the right sleeve includes the word “Apple” (although in a font that resembles Apple Myriad, an older rendition of Apple’s logotype that does not match this overall design).
Both the outer and inner layers of this shirt are textured, likely to promote moisture wicking. The interior lining is semi-transparent white.
Source: SUGOi
Close Your Rings T-shirt (2020)
According to a MacRumors article from August 2020, each year Apple “hosts a company wide fitness challenge for its employees at corporate offices and retail stores around the world, tasking participants to close all three of their Apple Watch Activity Rings every day of the month.”
This t-shirt was originally owned by an Apple employee who successfully completed this challenge. The shirt is black in size Large. The front logo features a stylized “2020” design that resembles the three Activity rings used on the Apple Watch Activity app.
Although Apple previously held this company-wide challenge in February, the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 delayed the challenge until July. The shirt was shipped with a congratulatory “celebrate” white card printed in metallic gold.
Source: MacRumors
iWork box and install DVD (version 9.0.3, 2009)
Apple described iWork ’09 for Mac OS X as “a suite of productivity applications for Apple computers. The suite includes a word processor (Pages), spreadsheet (Numbers), and a presentation application (Keynote).”
Information about each application was printed on the back of the box:
Pages ’09
Intuitive word processing and page layout.
- Choose from over 180 Apple-designed templates
- Focus on your writing with new full-screen view
- Easily lay out newsletters, posters, flyers, and more
Numbers ’09
Innovative, surprisingly powerful spreadsheets.
- Mix tables, charts, and graphics on a freeform canvas
- Use over 250 functions with visual placeholders
- Make sense of your data with interactive Table Categories
Keynote ’09
Incredible presentations, incredibly easy.
- Animate objects automatically with Magic Move
- Create dramatic text, image, and object transitions
- Add beautiful 3D chart animations
This version of iWork touted its ability to “exchange documents with anyone” by opening documents from Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint—or saving in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint formats.
The interior of the box slid out and opened, revealing an install DVD of version 9.0.3 of the iWork apps. The slide-out part of the package included a box with a top that opened to reveal a mini-manual and software licensing information.
Another version of this product artwork includes a “stamp” that specifies this product as the “’09” version of iWork, but this box only uses the iWork logo and only mentions the version on the bottom label.
Source: Apple
Apple Watch Series 3 (42mm, GPS, Space Gray aluminum case, 2017)
The Apple Watch Series 3 models looked identical to the Apple Watch models before them (original, Series 1, and Series 2), were available in the same sizes (38 mm and 42 mm), but were more powerful. The Series 3 had a faster processor, GPS, a barometric altimeter, and Siri support. This Apple Watch Series 3 is a Space Gray, 42 mm model.
The Series 3 Apple watch was the first to offer cellular service as an option, although this model is the GPS-only version. Apple described the Series 3 Watch in a press release:
“The third-generation Apple Watch is an amazing health and fitness companion with intelligent coaching features, water resistance 50 meters and a new barometric altimeter that measures relative elevation. Apple Watch Series 3 comes in two models, one with GPS and cellular, and one with GPS, both featuring a 70 percent faster dual-core processor and new wireless chip.”
This Apple Watch had a 312×390 OLED screen with Ion-X glass and a 7000 series anodized aluminum housing. Apple estimated the battery life at “up to 18 hours.”
The Apple Watch Series 3 used Apple’s S3 processor, “which allows for quicker app launch times and smoother graphics, and, for the first time, enables Siri to speak using the built-in speaker.” It also included a new W2 wireless chip that made Wi-Fi 85% faster and Bluetooth and Wi-Fi 50% more power efficient. The watch shipped with watchOS 4.
Apple TV (Generation 3, Early 2013)
When the Apple TV was first released in 2007, it was described as an “easy to use and fun way to wirelessly play all your favorite iTunes content from your PC or Mac on your widescreen TV, including movies, TV shows, music, photos and podcasts.” Three years later, the Generation 2 Apple TV was released in a form factor 80% smaller than the original device and with enhanced streaming capabilities.
The Generation 3 Apple TV was released on March 7, 2012, and featured “1080p programming including iTunes movies and TV shows, Netflix, Vimeo, photos and more in HD. With iTunes in the Cloud, customers can purchase and play their favorite movies and TV shows from the iTunes Store and watch them instantly on their HD TV.”
In addition to a “simpler, refined user interface,” AirPlay allowed users to stream or mirror content from an iPad or iPhone 4S to Apple TV.
The Apple TV Generation 3 looked identical to the Generation 2 model. It was 0.9 inch high, 3.9 x 3.9 inches square (with rounded corners) and weighed 0.6 pound. It used an Apple single-core A5 processor and had both Wi-Fi (802.11a, b, g, or n) and a 10/100BASE-T Ethernet port. Its audio/visual ports included HDMI and optical audio, and its maximum video output was 1080p, 1920 x 1080 HD (the Generation 2 was capable only of 720p).
The Early 2013 version of the Generation 3 Apple TV (model A1469) was not officially touted by Apple as an upgrade, but the internal hardware changed in approximately March 2013. EveryMac called this the Generation 3 “Revision A” version and reported that “Compared to the model it quietly replaced, it has a smaller 28 nm version of the Apple A5 processor (S5L8947), different identifiers, and supports Peer-to-Peer AirPlay (running Apple TV Software Update 7.0 or later).”
Sources: Apple (original Apple TV, Generation 2 Apple TV, Generation 3 Apple TV, technical specifications), EveryMac (early 2012, early 2013)
Apple TV (Generation 3, Early 2012)
When the Apple TV was first released in 2007, it was described as an “easy to use and fun way to wirelessly play all your favorite iTunes content from your PC or Mac on your widescreen TV, including movies, TV shows, music, photos and podcasts.” Three years later, the Generation 2 Apple TV was released in a form factor 80% smaller than the original device and with enhanced streaming capabilities.
The Generation 3 Apple TV (model A1427) was released on March 7, 2012, and featured “1080p programming including iTunes movies and TV shows, Netflix, Vimeo, photos and more in HD. With iTunes in the Cloud, customers can purchase and play their favorite movies and TV shows from the iTunes Store and watch them instantly on their HD TV.”
In addition to a “simpler, refined user interface,” AirPlay allowed users to stream or mirror content from an iPad or iPhone 4S to Apple TV.
The Apple TV Generation 3 looked identical to the Generation 2 model. It was 0.9 inch high, 3.9 x 3.9 inches square (with rounded corners) and weighed 0.6 pound. It used an Apple single-core A5 processor and had both Wi-Fi (802.11a, b, g, or n) and a 10/100BASE-T Ethernet port. Its audio/visual ports included HDMI and optical audio with a maximum video output of 1080p, 1920 x 1080 HD (the Generation 2 was capable only of 720p).
Sources: Apple (original Apple TV, Generation 2 Apple TV, Generation 3 Apple TV, technical specifications), EveryMac
iPod nano Generation 6 (pink, 2010)
The iPod nano Generation 6 was a major design change from previous iPod nano models. This iPod nano came in silver, graphite, blue, green, orange, pink, and (PRODUCT) RED Special Edition. Its design was a square aluminum and glass case with a clip on the back. It used a 1.54-inch Multitouch screen at 240×240 pixels.
Although its interface looked similar to iOS, the iPod nano Generation 6 could not run iOS applications or games compatible with previous iPod models. Its features included a pedometer, FM radio with live pause, Nike+iPod functions, VoiceOver, and Shake to Shuffle.
This example is pink and is in used condition with a few nicks and worn areas on the case.
Source: EveryMac