In fairness there was no confrontation in those states. Texas likely got the bonk because of requiring the disclaimer being a bridge too far, but the ruling explicitly blocks the age verification portion as well so it could be used as precedent against the other states now.
Always possible, and given the choice between a phone without a replaceable battery vs [functionally] the same phone with one I’ll always take the latter, but consumer battery tech has moved at a glacial pace compared to screen tech. Samsung plays in both industries though so maybe this’ll light a fire for them to speed up battery development.
The flip is possibly doable, but as someone with a Fold4 there simply isn’t room in the device to start incorporating screws in the half with a screen on both sides. Only way I can see it working is putting the whole battery on the side with a normal back, but there isn’t enough room for the same size of battery. It’d probably also throw off the balance in the hand when open.
I don’t care hugely about aesthetics, my concern is non-standard form factors. I don’t know how a phone like the Z Folds can be made with removable batteries, one of the 2 batteries is literally sandwiched between 2 screens. Implementing this would take it from feeling like a brick to being literally the size of a brick. Hopefully tech improves enough by 2027 to negate my concerns but I don’t see how.
In fairness, I don’t have to worry about any of this with Windows.