EXCLUSIVEDo YOU have a forgotten fortune in your drawer? Mobile phone expert reveals nine valuable handsets including a VERY well-known brand

One of the UKs top mobile phone experts is urging Brits to dig out any old handsets gathering dust at home - because they could be worth a small fortune.

New research from Vodafone suggests there are more than 200 million unused phones languishing in UK homes.

According to the study, the average Brit has at least two old phones at home with one-in-ten (13%) hoarding up to five unused devices that could be recycled, refurbished or rehomed.

The research, conducted to encourage donations of unwanted phones to the Great British Tech Appeal during Get Online Week 2024, also revealed a quarter (26%) of Brits have had idle phones for up to five years.

For most, their unused phones will be worth very little money - but if donated through the scheme could make a huge difference to the life of a digitally-excluded person.

But those on the hunt for old handsets around the house should keep an eye out for some of the rarer devices, which could earn their unwitting owner as much as £2,500.

Mobile phone fanatic Ben Wood is the founder and curator of the Mobile Phone Museum, which is home to some 2,800 unique devices spanning four decades.

His fascination for the handheld device began in the 1990s when he graduated from university and went to work for Vodafone.

Now, he has revealed some of the most valuable mobile phones handsets - and how much they could be worth. 

Vodafone VT1 

In 1983, Vodafone ordered 5,000 VT1s from Mobira and 5,000 Vodafone VM1 units from Panasonic

The original transportable phone, this piece is a true icon that started Bens collection. 

In 1983, Vodafone ordered 5,000 VT1s from Mobira and 5,000 Vodafone VM1 units from Panasonic. 

The handsets, which were the phones used on the Vodafone network when it became the first network to go live launched in 1985, have a current estimated value  ranging from £100 to £500. 

Motorola DynaTAC 8000X 

This will be remembered by many as the iconic brick phone for its use by ruthless banker Gordon Gekko, played by Michael Douglas, in the 1987 classic movie Wall Street

This will be remembered by many as the iconic brick phone for its use by ruthless banker Gordon Gekko, played by Michael Douglas, in the 1987 classic movie Wall Street.

Launched in 1984, this model has an estimated value of between £500 and £1,000

IBM Simon 

Today, the IBM Simon has an estimated value of between £1,000 and £2,500

Commenting on what he labelled as arguably the first ever smartphone, following its launch in 1993, Ben said: It was a breakthrough device with a touchscreen. It was incredible technology. They made 50,000 of them – very low production.

I dont know how many of them are out there now but youll find them sold in places like Bonhams.

Today, it has an estimated value of between £1,000 and £2,500. 

Vertu Ascent Ferrari 1947 Limited Edition 

Vertus phones were made with some the best materials in partnerships with brands and with a limited run

A subsidiary of Nokia, Vertu were regarded as the Swiss watchmaker of the mobile phone world. 

Their phones were made with some the best materials in partnerships with brands and with a limited run, meaning the estimated value of one today sits between £200 and £500. 

Ben says: A really interesting product, they only made 1,947 of these. 

The pad at the top is made of ceramic, baked in an oven, the chassis is made out of titanium, the pedal on the back is a replica of a Ferrari pedal, the leather on the back is made from the same leather thats in the cars. Schumacher had one.

Nokia 7700 

A very rare device and one of the first TV phones upon its launch in 2003, the Nokia 7700 could net you up to £1,000

A very rare device and one of the first TV phones upon its launch in 2003, the Nokia 7700 could net you up to £1,000.

Ben says: Curious looking phone but it never really shipped. The one that shipped was the 7710, that was the commercial version of it. But the 7700 is very, very sought-after today.

Orbitel Cityfone 

Another rarity – which came out in 1985 and was one of the first phones used on Vodafones network

Another rarity – which came out in 1985 and was one of the first phones used on Vodafones network.

Ben says: This is an amazing product, enormous great big brick of a phone. Very, very few of these exist because they were so rubbish, they kept breaking.

The phone had a party trick that if its tests failed it would start playing Chopins funeral march.

You could probably get £1,000 to £1,500 for one of these today – however they were £2,000 when they were new in 1985.

The original iPhone 

If you have the first iPhone from 2007, it could command up to £400

Value is dependent on condition and whether it still has the original packaging, but if you have the first iPhone from 2007, it could command up to £400.

Ben says: There are all these people who say as soon as I saw it, I knew it was going to change the world, but when the iPhone launched, people forget that it had a bit of a lukewarm reception.

At the time every other manufacturer was trying to make the most efficient smartphone. Blackberry was massive. Nokia outsold the iPhone hundreds of thousands of times.

But Steve Jobs understood that you needed a computer in your pocket. And the rest is history.

Motorolla Aura 

If you have a Motorolla Aura that features real diamonds, it could command up to £2,000.

A brand that was very much competing with Vertu in the luxury phone market, this product from Motorolla launched after the iPhone in 2009. 

If you have one that features real diamonds, it could command up to £2,000. 

Ben says: The one weve got in the museum is an Aura Diamond edition and it features 30 real diamonds around the screen and embedded in it, theyre expensive and they came in a beautiful wooden presentation box.

Nokia 7280 

This handset is regarded as the most exotic of Nokias fashion collection, which also included the Nokia 7260 and the Nokia 7270

This handset is regarded as the most exotic of Nokias fashion collection, which also included the Nokia 7260 and the Nokia 7270.

The phone was launched in Shanghai and introduced as being inspired by the glamour and elegance of the lavish 1920s. Today, it is valued between £100 and £250. 

Ben says: The lipstick phone was an iconic design, but of course, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, as they say.