mumpcake
drewfx1
bitflipper
Apple designed it so that after 10 failed attempts everything on the phone gets automatically deleted. A good design, IMO.
Since when is it impossible to get at data except through the OS? 
I tend to think this is more about people being lazy than anything else. Or maybe it is a ruse - if Apple wins all the idiots might think their data is safe and not do any basic due diligence.
Or maybe they just can't figure out how to get the stupid phone open.
Yes, like they couldn't have gone through the guy's cellular provider to get this.
Data is also encrypted during it's passage through the cellular/phone network, it also follows a different network route and protocol to voice or video calls. Otherwise it would be easy to get everyone's banking details etc. just by listening in to mobile phone transmissions with quite cheap and easily available gear. It isn't.