A rare early production Apple II in a ventless case has sold on eBay for an unprecedented USD $23,099. Despite the Apple II having been upgraded, most of the unit was completely original and in working condition. A pair of early Disk II drives (serials unknown) were also included, as well as several peripherals from the same era.
Originally designed as a ventless, fanless computer, Apple quickly determined that the Apple II would overheat and malfunction in it’s original case. Rather than add a cooling fan (Steve Jobs hated fans), vents were quickly added to the case design, solving the overheating issue. The Apple II remained vented ever after (though users still often added a third-party cooling fan). It’s been speculated that only about a hundred of these ventless cases were ever manufactured. Apple eventually offered a trade-in program to owners of the early cases and most of them took advantage of the replacement offer, thus insuring the rarity of the Apple II ventless case.
Recently, Apple II machines with early revision motherboards have been increasing in value (if eBay sales are a reliable indicator). Some machines with low serial numbers have been selling for $3000-$5000 USD depending on their original, overall condition. It’s been an on-going topic of interest in the Apple II collecting community as enthusiasts ponder if this is a just a fad or a harbinger of the future value of their collections.