Well, they could have opened it on their own and stop the political positioning/marketing OR let a hacker do it and lose cred, they decided the later.
Opening it on their own would have meant consenting to a legally baseless DEMAND to comply, setting precedent for many other jurisdictions to demand the same thing - an ongoing hostile scenario.
We know computer forensics companies exist precisely for the purpose of extracting data from such difficult circumstances. The exploit was well known/expected, so there’s no surprised that the OBSOLETE model involved was breached by a world-class expert in such matters (involving significant time, money, and likely destruction of the phone).
We don’t demean safe manufacturers for refusing to crack their own safes. We expect them to adhere to the premise that the product cannot be breached, and are not surprised when a master locksmith (or criminal genius) does, with great talent & tools, manage to do so.
Apple WON the PR battle: customers know that Apple will not sell out their data, standing up to the US government itself. I _WON’T_ use an Android device, and sparingly use other Google products, knowing full well that Google’s modus operandi is precisely to mine all the data they can get their hands on, and wouldn’t be surprised if it’s actually a CIA front company. I’ll stick with Apple, knowing they actively try to secure my data - even against Apple itself.