File this under 'too controversial for publication directly on these hallowed pages', but I wanted to vent my opinions on one of the (seemingly necessary?) evils of the current smartphone age: sealed batteries. You'll have read my official take on the subject, evenly pointing out the pros and cons of the two competing schools of hardware design thought, but if you want to know where my heart lies then look no further than today's rant here.

From the blog post/rant:

However, enough is enough. I realise that most tech commentators, supplied with far more loan/review phones than me and never getting to the point with any device where it's 'old', have been very vocal about 'sealed batteries being the way of the future' and that I should get used to it. The argument is usually along the lines that 200 million iPhone sales prove that Apple's 'sealed' designs are right. But just because the other appealing factors of the iPhone make it desirable doesn't mean that Apple are right about batteries.

But yes, Apple started the rot. And now we have the HTC One X and One S, the Nokia X7 and E7, the Lumia 800/900/920 and even (horror) the LG-made Nexus 4 all coming with 'sealed' batteries, Apple-style. It's a crime, it really is.

I'm not saying that my way is the only way to think - down that route lies bigotry and hatred(!) But at least you now know where I stand on the issue. And, should you need to pull the battery in your Lumia 820 or 808 PureView or whatever, to fix a problem or slot in a new cell, you can at least nod your head in my direction....