[kvakvs]

The statement about battery not being replaceable is false. They are replaceable. But the phone body is sealed to deliver the water and dust resistance rating from its technical specs, so opening it is an entire new adventure in itself.

[sllabres]

Water resistant (e.g. 30 min / 1 m) mobile phones with exchangeable batteries were quite common. They had easy to procure LiIon batteries which could replaced even by a clumsy person in minutes.

Would prefer that to a watertight phone with non replaceable batteries as aging or dying batteries are more common in my experience than my desire to go on a dive with my phone.

[minhazm]

> Water resistant (e.g. 30 min / 1 m) mobile phones with exchangeable batteries were quite common

I wouldn't say they were common, at least not for android smartphones. The first water resistant android phone was the Motorola Defy[1] in 2010. For Samsung they had the S4 Active and then the S5 had some water resistance. But then the S6 removed support for replaceable batteries. So the only Samsung phones with easily replaceable batteries and any water resistance were the S4 Active, S5 Active and the S5.

I think you're right that IP67 (30min / 1 meter) is probably achievable but I think most people prefer the better water resistance and by the time their phone battery degrades sufficiently they usually want a new phone. Additionally it's already possible to get your battery replaced. At least Apple will replace your phone battery going back to the 5S for $49 up to $99 for current models. I prefer this model where I have a trustworthy place to get the battery serviced that will preserve the water resistance for a somewhat reasonable price. I tried to look at the battery replacement cost for Samsung phones but couldn't find it, so maybe that's not a service they offer directly or it's just difficult to find.

[1] https://www.androidauthority.com/first-water-resistant-andro...

[sllabres]

Agree. With common I was thinking of "not specialized rugged phones" but more consumer class. (As you have written Samsung S5, S5 mini, ...)

[Tams80]

Yes, but the point is that they are now only available on very niche devices.

There was a brief period where common devices had ingress resistance and easily removeable batteries. The most notable being the Samsung Galaxy S5.

[ZiiS]

If the manufactures wanted to they could easily make a sealed phone and a sealed battery and just clip them together. The extra thickness of two layers of waterproofing between them is arguable on a fashion phone but irrelevant on a product like this.

[Izkata]

My last flip phone had a replaceable battery and was waterproof: the cover had a rubber gasket and you had to use a coin or key to pry it open.