BATTERIES - where to buy them?!!!

[GlennSprigg]

I bought a new wireless mouse a couple of weeks ago. It came with two Duracell batteries that went directly into the trash without ever being unwrapped. That's how much I like Duracell.

You must have your reasons, due to some past bad experience(s), but that seems a bit harsh ??
Apart from personal 'tastes' like Cars/Engines, I would not have put 'Duracell' into your category
of instant 'RubishBinAbility' ??

[rsjsouza]

I bought a new wireless mouse a couple of weeks ago. It came with two Duracell batteries that went directly into the trash without ever being unwrapped. That's how much I like Duracell.

You must have your reasons, due to some past bad experience(s), but that seems a bit harsh ??
Apart from personal 'tastes' like Cars/Engines, I would not have put 'Duracell' into your category
of instant 'RubishBinAbility' ??

Or give them to someone you dislike... 

(I have my reservations against Duracell, but given that I use my wireless mouse quite often, the batteries don't last enough to reach the dangerous leak age)

[james_s]

I'd use them in something relatively high drain. They don't normally leak within a few months, but I have noticed a lot of leaky Duracells that get left around. Alkaline batteries definitely are much more leak prone than they used to be.

[rdl]

It doesn't take long for Duracells to start leaking if you get bad ones. Several years ago there was a promotional thing with Pringles where you could get a free Pringles can speaker, so I sent off for one. When it arrived and I opened the package I was surprised to see that the two batteries that were included had already started leaking. They were Duracell batteries. That was the third time in recent history that I've had Duracells that leaked. I won't give them another chance.

[grifftech]

I have some duracell batteries that expired in 2013 that have not leaked

[james_s]

Sometimes you get lucky. I have some that are older than that and not leaking, but I've had others leak well before they expire.

[mzzj]

For me personally leak test would provide more useful information than capacity test for AA alkalines.
For anything current hungry I can always use lithium batteries or Eneloop rechargeables.   

Panasonic Industrial has been so far pretty good and they have 7 years self-life that is better than some other alkalines.

[GlennSprigg]

Hmmm...  Re: prev 1/2 dozen comments, or so... Although 'Duracell' were good, and always
competing heavily with 'EverReady' batteries, I wonder if the loss of quality is now due to
where they are now being made, with diminished quality control ??

I'm a part-time musician, and it annoys me how certain previously 'high-end' Guitar makers,
now have their factories in China... I'm sorry, but the quality/tonality/structure/wood etc etc
is NOT the same as they 'used' to be. We are always 'Sold-Out' to production costs.  I used
to willingly pay extra, if still hand-crafted in Canada, etc...

[malagas_on_fire]

Well buy some spare battery for testing in extreme enviroment conditions and check which leaks first... bahh thats too simple and maybe inacurate, but time will tell certainly. I had duracell on a bluetooth keyboard installed, no leaks, but that doesn't mean anything, since i've seen leaked ones.

it is advised to do a battery inspection (aka teardown ) on brand new devices that came with them installed, such as calculators, multimeters, etc.

I have seen in local stores some batteries for sale that passed the expiring date and someone  end on promotion... yeah...

[james_s]

Hmmm...  Re: prev 1/2 dozen comments, or so... Although 'Duracell' were good, and always
competing heavily with 'EverReady' batteries, I wonder if the loss of quality is now due to
where they are now being made, with diminished quality control ??

I'm a part-time musician, and it annoys me how certain previously 'high-end' Guitar makers,
now have their factories in China... I'm sorry, but the quality/tonality/structure/wood etc etc
is NOT the same as they 'used' to be. We are always 'Sold-Out' to production costs.  I used
to willingly pay extra, if still hand-crafted in Canada, etc...

Unfortunately most companies (and most people) value the short term over the long term. A reputable brand can reduce their quality and keep selling a lot of units for a while on momentum. Then the other brands are forced to either follow the same approach to compete, or in most cases go under because too many people when given a choice between a $10 item and a superficially similar item that costs $150 will buy the $10 item every time. Pretty soon *all* the mainstream stuff is made in China at the lowest price available.

Now China is certainly capable of producing quality goods, but companies that outsource production are usually not interested in paying enough to maintain quality.

[rsjsouza]

I bought a new wireless mouse a couple of weeks ago. It came with two Duracell batteries that went directly into the trash without ever being unwrapped. That's how much I like Duracell.

You must have your reasons, due to some past bad experience(s), but that seems a bit harsh ??
Apart from personal 'tastes' like Cars/Engines, I would not have put 'Duracell' into your category
of instant 'RubishBinAbility' ??

Or give them to someone you dislike... 

(I have my reservations against Duracell, but given that I use my wireless mouse quite often, the batteries don't last enough to reach the dangerous leak age)

I guess I spoke too soon. I just had a terrible experience with Duracells that were supposed to expire in 2025 but sprayed a gaseous white matter all around a precious toy of mine (an old HP95LX), ruining it in the process. In the spur of the moment I didn't take photographs, but I should have and ordered Duracell to refund my equipment! 

Oh well... I guess I moved to the team "Duratrash".

[Rick Law]

...
...
Unfortunately most companies (and most people) value the short term over the long term. A reputable brand can reduce their quality and keep selling a lot of units for a while on momentum.
...
...
Now China is certainly capable of producing quality goods, but companies that outsource production are usually not interested in paying enough to maintain quality.

Company changes hands too often and consequently the meaning of the brand change along with it.  Each owner has its reason to purchase the brand.  So, the meaning and the promise of the brand will change correspondingly.

Look at Duracell's history:
1964: Duracell brand started by  P.R. Mallory Company.
1978: P.R. Mallory was acquired by Dart Industries.
1980: Dart acquired/merged with Kraft.  Kraft is better known for its cheese, beverages, and food.  Kraft was not much of an electro-chemical industry powerhouse I would say.
1988: KK&R Investment brought Duracell, took the company public in 1989.
1996: Duracell acquired by Gillette.  Gillette was best known for (disposable) razors, shaving supplies, and personal care products.  I recall reading a business magazine article back then about the acquisition.  The article speculated that rather like razors, batteries are use-and-dispose products.  Thus, Gillette thought batteries fits their business model of throw away razors/blades.
2005: P&G acquired Gillette thus becoming the parent company owning Duracell.  P&G is (was) known for its consumer goods such as cleaning agents, personal care, hygienics stuff and (at the time) Pringles Potato Chip.
2014: Berkshire Hathaway announced its intend to acquire Duracell.  Berkshire Hathaway is an investment firm started/owned by the famous Warren Buffett.  Deal completed 2015.  2016, Duracell (under Berkshire Hathaway) moved to Chicago, CEO replaced...

My interpretation of the events is: Mallory developed a good battery, Kraft kind of messed it up with a cheese mindset.  KK&R Investment saw the opportunity, purchased Duracell from Kraft and made a better company out of it.  That Duracell is probably is the Duracell most identified with.  KK&R (being an investment firm) cashed in and sold it to Gillette.  Razors and batteries don't mix well.  Now Berkshire Hathaway, another investment firm, will try to perhaps repeat what KK&R did.  Or, it may just squeeze cost and vampire on it.

When Jaquar became Indian owned (2016), when Volvo became Chinese owned (2010), and when even RCA (Radio Corporation of America) became Chinese (for a while, but now a Sony owned brand)...  I suppose a word of wisdom could be: before one trust a brand for what it was, make sure what was is what is.

Reference: Duracell history above is distilled from Wiki's Duracell page here:
^{https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duracell}

[james_s]

It makes me sad the way so many companies buy and sell brands, and talk about "the brand" strictly as a marketing entity. Brands used to mean something, you could buy a Zenith TV and know it was a good quality product, you could buy a Volvo and know you were getting a quirky, safe, extremely practical car designed in Sweden by an engineering-driven company. You could buy a Duracell battery and know it was going to perform as advertised and be unlikely to leak.

All of the above are now just names owned by various companies and slapped on whatever product they decide to market under those names. Consequently to me anyway brands have less relevance than ever, most are just a name stuck on something to justify the price point.

[Gromitt]

... when Volvo became Chinese owned (2010), ...

Volvo is still Swedish owned, Volvo Cars on the other hand is Chinese (but still based in Sweden).

[james_s]

Volvo is still Swedish owned, Volvo Cars on the other hand is Chinese (but still based in Sweden).

Yes I realize that, but I'm not going to commute to work in a semi truck. Volvo cars changed dramatically some time after Ford bought them. They dropped the practical, engineer-driven function over form aspect that they had nailed so well in the 200/700/900 series and started chasing Audi and BMW in the luxury market. I drove a S80 T6 once and it certainly fast, but the thing was bloated beyond belief with gadgets and luxury bells & whistles, and not even an option to get one with a proper manual gearbox. That was more than 10 years ago, as far as I can tell they have gotten even more bloated since then.

[Raj]

Well, I trust amazon basic. they never leaked on me.Duracell leaks a lot in comparison.

[rokz]

Just joined up and would like to introduce myself based in Ireland/uk.Have been involved selling  laptop battery packs,genuine Dell batteries for a good while now.Started as a Hobby and grew into more of a passion.Sometimes i do get in some very strange packs in and would appreciate  your help identifying  them as need to charge them appropriately  .Please check attached photos !.Maybe someone can help me  And thanks in advance

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1dNzi9pKwSZvlSE6NZyVt4NyUaHsLJ6br