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What would you do if you had thousands of rare computers in your hands, destined for oblivion but still usable? That’s the gamble Bob Cook took when he bought 7,000 Apple Lisa computers, a cursed model from the Apple brand. But just when he thought he’d given them a second life, Apple decided otherwise. In a turn of events as brutal as they were unexpected, the company claimed the machines… before making them disappear forever. But what happened? A look at one of the most enigmatic episodes in Apple’s history.
The Apple Lisa, a resounding failure for Apple
In 1983, Apple launched the Lisa, a revolutionary computer for its time, featuring a graphical user interface and mouse. But despite its ambitions, the Lisa was a commercial disaster. Its compact design, imposed by Steve Jobs, led to overheating problems and repeated crashes. Its exorbitant price – $9,995 at the time of its release, or around 30,000 euros today – made it inaccessible to the general public. Meanwhile, IBM was pushing ahead with its PC 5150, equipped with an Intel 8088 processor, which was to lay the foundations of modern computing.
The failure of the Lisa forced Apple to rethink its strategy. From 1984 onwards, the firm concentrated its efforts on the Macintosh, a more accomplished model that benefited from a major marketing campaign. But one question remained unanswered: what to do with the thousands of Apple Lisa models clogging up warehouses?
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Bob Cook, the man who wanted to save the Apple Lisa
This is where Bob Cook, a passionate Apple reseller and founder of Sun Remarketing, comes in. Specializing in the recovery of unsold equipment, he had already bought back 3,500 Apple IIIs, another Apple failure. By signing agreements with Apple, he could buy these machines at low cost, repair them and resell them.
Seeing an opportunity with the Apple Lisa, Bob Cook bought up to 7,000 units. Apple even allowed him to modify defective models to make them more efficient. His company invested $200,000 in research and development to create an improved version, dubbed the “Lisa Professional”.
All seemed well for giving these computers a second life… until Apple abruptly changed its position.
Apple’s U-turn: thousands of computers destroyed
In September 1989, Apple decided to put an end to Bob Cook’s initiative. Without public explanation, the brand demanded the return of the computers. Faced with Apple’s legal might, Bob Cook could only comply.
A few weeks later, a truck chartered by Apple arrived at Sun Remarketing’s warehouse. The employees collected the entire stock, without leaving a single computer behind. Their destination? A landfill in Logan, Utah. There, the 7,000 Apple Lisa computers were simply crushed and buried.
A page erased from Apple’s history
Why has Apple taken this radical decision? Officially, no clear explanation has been given. But several hypotheses are circulating. Perhaps the brand, concerned about its image, didn’t want to see defective machines modified by a third party circulating on the market. Apple has always sought to control its ecosystem and its products, and selling “reworked” computers went against this philosophy.
This long-unknown story was revealed in a documentary by The Verge, Lisa: Steve Jobs’ sabotage and Apple’s secret burial. It illustrates a time when managing unsold stock sometimes involved extreme decisions.
Ironically, Apple is now advocating a more responsible environmental policy. The recent Mac mini M4 is even presented as “carbon neutral”, using 100% recycled aluminum. A commendable initiative… but one that contrasts with the thousands of Apple Lisa sunk into the ground over 30 years ago.
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I’ve read this story multiple times on different sites and they seem to get the same issue wrong each time: Sun had these computers on consignment from Apple.
They didn’t buy them from Apple, and Apple did nothing nefarious here other than changing their mind.
Think of it like taking your antique watch to a consignment shop for them to sell for you and then having a change of heart. The shop may have had the watch cleaned and advertised but it was a consignment and if it is in the agreement, you are allowed to change your mind, possibly with a fee but nothing more.