I have the exact same machine as that (1400c/166), and mine came new in box as well.
Of course though, that was back in December 1997, when PowerBook 1400s were still being manufactured.
Either way, I do think its a shame that he opened it, even though its never been used, the fact that its been taken out of the box means that its no longer worth as much as it would have been NIB. Also, that machine doesn't have a 6GB hard drive - the largest drive you could get in a 1400 was 2GB....hell, I'd be surprised if 6GB notebook drives even existed back in 1997, remember this was a time when even 2GB seemed gigantic. Coming from an LCIII with an overstuffed 80MB hard drive, I remember being so sure that I would never fill up the 1400's huuuuuuuuuuge 2GB drive.
Of course though, that was back in December 1997, when PowerBook 1400s were still being manufactured.
Either way, I do think its a shame that he opened it, even though its never been used, the fact that its been taken out of the box means that its no longer worth as much as it would have been NIB. Also, that machine doesn't have a 6GB hard drive - the largest drive you could get in a 1400 was 2GB....hell, I'd be surprised if 6GB notebook drives even existed back in 1997, remember this was a time when even 2GB seemed gigantic. Coming from an LCIII with an overstuffed 80MB hard drive, I remember being so sure that I would never fill up the 1400's huuuuuuuuuuge 2GB drive.