This iPhone 12 Pro special edition is super nostalgic — and just $10,000

This iPhone 12 with a custom design harking back to the early days of Apple looks amazing, but you're very unlikely to be able to afford it, let alone get one.

It comes from tech customization house Caviar (via LetsGoDigital) who you may remember from their decadent Space Odyssey iPhone 12 Pro. But while that started at $6,600, the cheapest you can get one of these versions for is $9,900. The most expensive version, an iPhone 12 Pro Max with 512GB storage, will run you $11,150.

iPhone 12 release date, price, specs and leaks
For a budget Apple phone experience, check out the iPhone SE

The back glass is completely removed for a retro wooden panel. Embedded within the panel is a titanium plate that resembles a monitor and keyboard from the Apple I, the first computer made by the company back in 1976. There's an original Apple logo printed onto the wood also, which looks quite a bit different from the company's ultra-clean design philosophy today.

What makes this phone unique (and so expensive) is that you get a piece of Apple I motherboard embedded in the bottom third of the iPhone's back. Keep in mind that only 200 or so Apple Is were ever made, and most are hidden away safely in museums or private collections. Since Caviar is only offering 9 copies total of this model, the phone is a collector's item twice over.

If that's too expensive for you, then from $4,900 you can get the iPhone 12 Pro Apple I Light models Caviar is also selling. This removes the titanium elements but retains the logo and a much smaller piece of motherboard. There are 49 units of this model available, which should make it much easier to get a hold of in theory.

For those of us without thousands of dollars to spare, the normal iPhone 12 range will get launched next month, with the latest leaks pointing to an October 13 reveal. You can see some of its new features on Caviar's custom designs, like the flat sides and the Pro models' quad cameras, featuring a new LiDAR sensor. We're expecting a more typical glass and metal design on the production models however.

As far as internal specs, we are anticipating a new 5G-compatible A14 Bionic chipset, and OLED displays on all models. But in return for these improvements, it's thought that the base price for the iPhone 12 may rise by $50 to $100.

Richard is based in London, covering news, reviews and how-tos for phones, tablets, gaming, and whatever else people need advice on. Following on from his MA in Magazine Journalism at the University of Sheffield, he's also written for WIRED U.K., The Register and Creative Bloq. When not at work, he's likely thinking about how to brew the perfect cup of specialty coffee.