Yes, they moved all their batteries away from glued adhesives to "Command Strips" pull-tab style adhesive pads. Same pads have been on the laptops for a bit as well. The latest iPhone also rotated the guts to where the battery is easier to get to and does not require removal of the logic board.
I’m something like 3 for 20 lifetime in getting those CommandStrip style adhesives to release completely, no matter how
many videos I watch for technique.
Yeah at this point I don't even bother, just heat up the phone with a hair dryer until it's hot to touch and then rip out the battery, never got one out in anything else but a horribly bent condition. Pro tip: discharge the device to 0% before, so that if it's accidentally pierced during that delicate process it won't set everything on fire.
If I ever need to do the same thing with a laptop, I'll try to get my hands on a barrel of sand just in case..
https://www.ifixit.com/News/100693/more-modular-than-ever-be...