[nescioquid]

> Apple has clearly decided that the battery is better held in place by adhesive ...

They decided to glue the battery down. You may assume that each decision by Apple seeks an optimum, so you concluded this decision was for the best. But better for whom -- Apple or the consumer?

Note also, that when I replace a battery that's been glued in, there are many more steps than for devices that aren't so glued down. Possibly because the people who designed it were thinking about repair and replacement scenarios.