Skip to main content

iPhones are now part of cops’ crime-fighting kit in New York City

nypd iphones for cops cop smartphone
Kena Betancur/Getty Images
The cops of New York City have a new crime-fighting tool: The iPhone.

Having finally decided that Windows-based phones aren’t the future, the New York Police Department is now in the process of ditching its Lumia handsets and replacing them with thousands of Apple-made devices.

The iPhones-for-cops plan was first revealed last summer, and this week the New York Daily News reported that the transition is now well and truly underway.

Officers have been dropping by an old police academy in Manhattan to swap their Lumia for an iPhone 7 or 7 Plus. With some 36,000 officers waiting to get their hands on the new phone, it’s clearly going to take some time to complete the changeover, though police in the Bronx and Staten Island are already getting to grips with their new device.

NYPD deputy commissioner for information and technology Jessica Tisch told the Daily News they’re giving out around 600 iPhones a day, adding that they’re seeing “a lot of excitement” among cops collecting their new handset.

New York’s finest are using their smartphones for a number of tasks, including filling out crime reports and receiving videos and surveillance pictures of wanted suspects. When responding to calls, the device also provides officers with any criminal history connected to an address, which may give them a better idea of what to expect when they arrive.

Officer Christopher Clampitt told the Daily News that these days, 911 dispatches often come over the phone before the department radio, adding that an alert to his 911 app last year helped him and his partner to reach a robbery that was in progress, enabling them to stop it and make an arrest. Clampitt said that if they’d waited for the radio, the response time would’ve been slower and the suspect could’ve escaped.

The police department won’t be forking out any extra cash for its new handsets, as it’s defined as a hardware upgrade, according to the terms of its AT&T contract.

While the cops seemed happy with the way the Lumia 830 and 640 XL phones helped them with their daily duties, Microsoft last year ended support for the Windows Phone 8.1 operating system that powered them, prompting the NYPD to consider an alternative device.

Editors' Recommendations

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
Watch an acclaimed director use the iPhone 15 Pro to shoot a movie
acclaimed director uses iphone 15 to shoot movie shot on pro midnight

Shot on iPhone 15 Pro | Midnight | Apple

As part of its long-running Shot on iPhone series, Apple recently handed acclaimed Japanese director Takashi Miike (Audition, 13 Assassins, The Happiness of the Katakuris) an iPhone 15 Pro to shoot a short film.

Read more
5 phones you should buy instead of the iPhone 15 Pro
iPhone 15 Pro in Natural Titanium held in hand in front of a wooden gate.

Apple’s iPhone 15 Pro is what we consider one of the best iPhones that you can buy right now. It offers most of the latest cutting-edge tech from Apple, including the powerful new A17 Pro chip, an improved camera system, a beautiful ProMotion display, a titanium body, the new Action button, and USB-C. It’s Apple’s most premium phone but in a compact size.

But if you’re in the market for a new phone, you should know there are other options, too. You don’t necessarily need the latest and greatest from Apple, especially if you’re not truly vested in its ecosystem.

Read more
2024’s coolest iPhone accessory is a throwback to old Android phones
The Nomad Magnetic Leather Back Case on an iPhone 15 Pro.

I’ve long been a fan of leather. It’s probably the metalhead in me. Judas Priest. Metallica. Or maybe it was the smell of the baseball glove when I was younger.

And it hasn’t gone away as I’ve aged. Leather belts. Leather wallets. And, of course, leather phone cases over the years. A ridiculous number of phones and cases, given my profession for the past 15 years. And that means when I saw the Nomad Magnetic Leather Back make an appearance, I knew I had to have one.

Read more