> it be un-foldable compromises the battery life, overall thickness (when folded) and weight to at least some extent

Not as much as you would think.

The Galaxy Fold 7 has a 6.5" outer screen (as compared to 6.3" screen in the iPhone 16 pro), is 8.9mm thick when folded (8.25mm in the iPhone 16 pro), has a 4400mAh battery (3,582 mAh in the iPhone 16 pro), and weighs 215g (199 grams for the iPhone 16 pro).

> plus it costs way more

The big downsides are price of $1999 launch price as compared to $999 launch price for the iphone 16 pro and durability. For durability, the foldable screens seem to be very soft making it easy to damage, say with a thumbnail.