Seattle – 21 June 2002 0545am – Vintage Micros of Marietta, South Carolina is offering a rare Apple Lisa 1 “Twiggy” personal computer online. The machine, which is among the uncommon machines of the Apple Computer, Inc., is expected to draw in the range of $15,000 based on past online auctions for similar items.
The Lisa 1 sold originally for nearly $10,000 when it was released in 1982, however, due to the number of problems with the machine, very few were actually ever sold by Apple Computer, Inc.. This particular machine was one that came directly from the Texas Apple Lisa manufacturing plant and is in absolutely perfect condition.
The machine is being sold through the online Auction site at EBay and the item can be reached at http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2033627836. While the auction has another 9 days to go, this may be the only chance for the Apple computer collector to ever find one of these machines again.
Most of the machines sold online in the past have been non-functional However the one offered by Vintage Micros is not only functional but has been fully tested and comes complete with a fully functional Apple Profile hard disk drive. The machine comes complete with Lisa mouse and keyboard as well as the software that is loaded onto the hard drive.
According to Vintage Micros president, John Woodall, “The machine is the only one I have ever seen which was not only in perfect condition but also was completely functional.
The Apple Lisa 1 is known as the “Twiggy” due to its floppy drives which were high capacity during it’s heyday. However, the drives were problematic and known to become non-functional without explanation or reason. According to Mac Buyer’s Guide.com’s Bob Loblaw, “Lisa: “Twiggy” drive – notoriously unreliable, these drives were considered by many the Lisa’s second worst feature”.
While most owners had a love-hate relation ship with the machines, they are so rare that they are even rarer than the vaunted Apple-1.
A.P.P.L.E. Director, Bill Martens said, “I have only seen one of these actually working until now. This is a masterpiece for sure and will make a great addition to a top line computer museum.” For more information concerning the auction, contact Vintage Micros at (864) 836-4802 or send email to john@vintagemicros.com. Press Inquiries can be sent to press@callapple.org.
