How much easier? If all they had to do to not have access to it themselves is to ask the user for his password when there's a new update, that's hardly that inconvenient...
I'm not saying that it was the right thing to do in hindsight, but I get a little nervous even when updating a small web server, so I understand the tendency to leave repair options open on something as big as iPhones. Real hardware-based security is about more than just about asking for a password. It means making the device unreadable if it's been disassembled or tampered with, and that could have unintended side-effects if any mistakes are made or something is overlooked. It's definitely worth pursuing considering the political situation the world is in right now.
