Why the false idea that replaceable batteries don't demand serious compromises in other areas of product design?

If EU bureaucrats can design a better phone, well... why don't they?

Replaceable batteries doesn't prevent the creation of water resistant phones - the topic specifically under discussion here.

In fact I'm writing this comment on a waterproof 2014 Samsung Galaxy S5. It's got a rubber gasket around the back cover to keep the water out.

I didn't say they did.

A "better" design is one where the consumer can service the battery without having to use special tools and a heat gun. It is explicitly _not_ one which looks "sleeker" in the marketing materials.

You can do it with a hair drier and the suction cap that usually comes with the battery. Or you can take it to a store at any mall and they do it on the spot for you.

It's one of the easier things to fix. I could swap a phone battery easier than I could replace my door handle or repair clothing.

This is the thing that annoys me about these discussions. Be against arbitrary barriers to consumer repairs that have no benefits to the consumer? Totally on board.

But that doesn't mean that repairs/replacements need to be limited to something a random user can do without tools or at least with tools they're likely to have laying around their house. I've replaced batteries and had batteries replaced in my MacBooks a few times and it hasn't been an unreasonably difficult or expensive process.

I've had laptops with batteries you could pop out but they were relatively heavy compared to today's norms.

So basically there's an entire industry needed to support people (and mechanics/shops) who work on cars--including vehicles that pre-date modern computer controls and which are considered user-repairable. But somehow repairing a smartphone or a laptop shouldn't require any knowledge or equipment beyond what the average user possesses.