Have batteries really gotten better?

[Lasonic TRC-920]

I didn't want to hijack this thread: Battery Efficiency so i thought I would start a new one...

Do you think modern batteries are better than batteries from the 80's?

I lived with my radio, playing it night and day and I remember going through ALLOT of batteries. I remember plugging in every chance I got to try to conserve. But as I have mentioned before my radio back in the day was the TRC-920 and they are pigs on batteries so it's hard to tell if that's a good measuring stick.

So, are a modern set of Duracell's or Energizer's really longer lasting today? Has basic battery technology moved forward?

 

[blu_fuz]

For as much as we spend on batteries, they should last 2x as long. 10D cells is anywhere from $12-$17 and if you do a full day of blasting you could be tossing them in the trash at the end of the day....

 

[Superduper]

Nowadays, almost every manufacturer sells alkalines exclusively. Back in the '70's and '80's, alkalines were a luxury and most young'uns had very limited budgets, so you probably bought the much more common "Heavy Duty" (hahahaha) Zinc Carbon batteries which had like 1/3 the life of alkalines. I'm pretty sure that batteries have not improved much unless you are speaking of the energizer lithiums which are definitely a big cut above the alkalines (and a big fat price higher too).

 

[Lasonic TRC-920]

Nowadays, almost every manufacturer sells alkalines exclusively. Back in the '70's and '80's, alkalines were a luxury and most young'uns had very limited budgets, so you probably bought the much more common "Heavy Duty" (hahahaha) Zinc Carbon batteries which had like 1/3 the life of alkalines. I'm pretty sure that batteries have not improved much unless you are speaking of the energizer lithiums which are definitely a big cut above the alkalines (and a big fat price higher too).

I was hoping you would chime in....

I'm positive I was buying whatever was cheap, Thrifty Brand or Radio Shack. Mixed in with the 920 eating them like skittles. I went through 100's of batteries as a kid. You can still get the "Heavy Duty" batteries at the $0.99 store. I may have to do a test

One thing is for sure, the Duracell's I have been buying the last couple of years hold up pretty damn good.