Old handsets sitting in your drawer could be worth £4,700 – how to find out what you could make

Ви можете мати старі телефонні апарати, які лежать у вашому ящику, і вони могли б коштувати £4,700 — як дізнатися, скільки ви можете отримати

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WONDERING if your first ever mobile phone is an antique yet? You could be sitting on a small fortune.
There are over 880million unused gadgets lying around peoples homes, according to research by charity material focus.
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We’re used to modern devices – but older ones could actually fetch us a pretty penny
That’s a dozen gadgets for every person in the UK.
But some old tech could be worth hundreds, even thousands, paticuarly mobile phones.
Experts say there has been a notable uptick in prices on online auction sites over the last few years as people have become more interested in collecting old technology.
But of course, it’s important to remember that you aren’t guaranteed to fetch huge amounts if you do choose to sell your old phones, as prices can fluctuate based on a number of factors.
For example, demand at the time you come to sell and how common it is in circulation can affect its value.
And remember that anyone can list a phone on eBay and charge whatever amount they wish, but it’s only ever worth what someone is willing to pay.
So, looking at listing prices isn’t necessarily a reflection of what the are actually selling for.
You will get a more accurate indication of what people are willing to pay for a specific model by checking the “recently sold” section on eBay.
Below, we list the most valuable models based on their sold prices on eBay to help you know what you should be looking for.
Motorola DynaTAC 8000X – £1,776.01
This Motorola model was the first handheld mobile phone
The Motorola DynaTAC 8000X, which was the first handheld mobile phone.
It’s one of the most famous mobiles ever made — and is often known simply as the original “brick” phone.
The story began in 1973, when Motorola engineer Martin Cooper made the first public call from a handheld mobile phone on a street in New York.
It would take another decade of development before the DynaTAC 8000X was approved by US regulators in 1983 and later went on sale in 1984.
At the time, it was a serious status symbol and came with an eye-watering price tag of around $3,995.
tall and offered just 30 minutes of talk time after roughly 10 hours of charging.
It could store 30 phone numbers, but there was no camera, internet, texting or apps.
Despite that, the DynaTAC 8000X changed the way people communicated.
Original models are now considered highly collectible, especially if they are in good condition or come with their original box and accessories.
One sold on eBay for a massive £1,776 in 2022.
HTC Touch Diamond2 – £542.90
The HTC Touch Diamond2 launched in 2009 and hit the market after the iPhone
The HTC Touch Diamond2 was one of the most eye-catching smartphones of the late 2000s — arriving just as touchscreen mobiles were starting to take over.
It was launched in 2009 as the follow-up to HTC’s original Touch Diamond.
It was designed to rival the growing wave of smartphones hitting the market after the first iPhone.
Unlike many modern smartphones, it also came with a stylus, which could be used for more precise tapping.
It has an average selling price of £542.90 on eBay, according to mobile phone insurance providers Protect Your Bubble.
iPhone – £4,795
Apple boss Steve Jobs unveiled the first iPhone in 2007
The first iPhone is one of the most important gadgets ever made and it helped change the mobile phone industry forever.
Apple boss Steve Jobs unveiled it in January 2007, describing it as a phone, an iPod and an internet device all in one.
It went on sale in the US in June 2007, before arriving in the UK later that year.
The original iPhone was seen as a luxury gadget, with prices starting at $499 in the US.
When we checked, we found a 1st generation iPhone that had sold for a whopping £4,795 on April 7.
Another sold for £348.40 on June 8, while a third went for £307.50 on April 21.
iPhone 3G – £286.70
The iPhone 3G was pretty basic by today’s standards but can be pretty valuable
The iPhone 3G was Apple’s second iPhone and the model that helped bring the smartphone to a much wider audience.
It was launched in 2008, a year after the original iPhone, and fixed one of the biggest complaints about the first model by adding 3G mobile internet.
That meant users could browse the web, check emails and use online services much faster when they were away from Wi-Fi.
The handset kept the same 3.5-inch touchscreen as the original iPhone, but came with a new curved plastic back instead of the first model’s aluminium design.
In the UK, it was sold through O2 and became one of the most sought-after gadgets of the year.
By today’s standards though, it was pretty basic.
There was no front-facing camera, no video recording, no FaceTime and no 4G or 5G.
When we checked eBay, we found a model that had sold for £286.70 on June 3.
The Motorola RAZR2 – £399
The Motorola RAZR2 was the follow-up to one of the most iconic mobile phones of the 2000s — the original Motorola RAZR.
It launched in 2007 and was designed to build on the huge success of the ultra-thin flip phone that had become a must-have gadget and fashion accessory.
Motorola released several versions of the RAZR2, including the V8, V9 and V9m, depending on the market and network.
The handset kept the famous clamshell design, but came with a sleeker metal body, improved screens and a more premium feel.
Today, the RAZR2 is remembered as one of the last big luxury flip phones before the smartphone era took over — and boxed models in good condition can still appeal to collectors.
We found a Motorola RAZR2 that had sold for £399 on eBay on June 3.
How to spot valuable items
COMMENTS by Consumer Editor, Alice Grahns:
It’s easy to check if items in your attic are valuable.
As a first step, go on eBay to check what other similar pieces, if not the same, have sold for recently.
Simply search for your item, filter by “sold listings” and toggle by the highest value.
This will give you an idea of how much others are willing to pay for it.
The method can be used for everything ranging from rare coins and notes to stamps, old toys, books and vinyl records – just to mention a few examples.
For coins, online tools from change experts like Coin Hunter are also helpful to see how much it could be worth.
Plus, you can refer to Change Checker’s latest scarcity index update to see which coins are topping the charts.
For especially valuable items, you may want to enlist the help of experts or auction houses.
Do your research first though and be aware of any fees for evaluating your stuff.
As a rule of thumb, rarity and condition are key factors in determining the value of any item.
You’re never guaranteed to make a mint, however.
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June 22, 2026 at 03:36PM

June 22, 2026 at 03:36PM