Thousands of mobile phones were reported stolen in Manchester last year - and most were made by Apple.
Greater Manchester Police recorded 4,791 mobile phone thefts in the city in 2018. Of those, ten per cent were Apple iPhone 7s which cost a total of £249,977 alone.
Victims were most likely to be targeted along Deansgate or at Piccadilly, in the city centre, new research has revealed.
It shows that an average of 13 smartphones were stolen in the city every day, compared to an average of five a day in Leeds and three a day in Bristol and Liverpool.
Mobile and gadget recycling comparison website CompareMyMobile.com obtained the data from GMP through a Freedom of Information request.
The company’s mobile expert Rob Baillie said: “A steep price increase of the latest smartphone devices puts targets on users’ backs because people are essentially walking around with a £1,000 note in their hands, or more in some cases.
“While connected to their devices and disconnected from the surroundings due to checking directions on Google Maps, listening to music, taking an Instagram Story video, this makes mobile users even more prone to street theft attempts nowadays.
"Staying alert and paying attention to your surroundings can help, but even more importantly making the most of security features like face ID, double authentication and phone locator should be a priority for those who want to make sure their phones and data are safe.”
CompareMyMobile.com found that 60 per cent of all phones stolen in Manchester were manufactured by Apple. Of those, 533 were iPhone 7s with a total worth of £249,977.
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Samsung smartphones were the second most commonly stolen make at 1,008 devices.
There were Postcodes where the most smartphones were reported stolen include M1 5LH Deansgate, Castlefield and Piccadilly were found to be hotspots for mobile phone thefts.
The 4,791 mobile phones reported stolen in Manchester in 2018 compared to 1,216 in Bristol, 1,296 in Liverpool and 1,833 in Leeds during the same time.
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