I just sorted through a box of vintage 2000s alkaline batteries and it was only the Maxwell AAA that still held a charge a decade and half later past their expiration. The tiny Duracell batteries had the same result, but so did some obscure Chinese one…the bigger ones all leaked and even corroded the container
Great video. I have used a ton of aaa Duracell and Energizer batteries over the years. Even just recently I purchased some for my TV remote. It seems like those batteries just keep going up in price every time I go to get some. Never heard of Vonico batteries. Ordered some up from Amazon. I did a nighttime bedroom bouncing light of the ceiling test using a Duracell and a Vonico battery. The flashlight I used was an Olight i3e. Nice little key-chain flashlight. The mfg says it put out 90 lumens for 45 min. Well - The Vonico put out a perfect 90 lumen beam for the full 45 min and then dropped off significantly. The Duracell put out a good 90 lumen beam for 12 min and then dropped off to about a 40 lumen beam that lasted for 2 hr+. I'm going to see how the Vonico aa do. Hope they work as well.
Yeah. I didn't run any AA test but I assume the results should be the same. You should reply when you find out, I would be interested to see how consistent manufacturers are with different sizes.
Thanks for commenting this! It’s hard to get any valuable information from reviews on Amazon. It’s either praise for those who just got them for the price or people complaining because they were the few who had a bad experience. It’s rarely comparative in an objective way.
I have been using Voniko for 2 years and can confirm they don't last as long as any energizer battery but they are close enough that it saves us money in the long run still. So what I do is use them where its easy and fast to change batteries but anything that is high up or important like security cameras I use long life energizer like lithium and or energizer max hope that helps!
Thanks. Please do rechargeable batteries with how long they hold a charge, #of times to charge, plus all of what you did with the regular batteries in this video. Thanks again!!
Thanks. I was on amazon to restock my duracell as I have been doing for years. Then, I started to think that I should ask google for best battery. I'm glad I found your test. I will not buy duracell any more :-)
I also have found Energizer plus batteries long enough lasting for low drain and higher drain electronics of all the batteries I buy over the years. Vonico or Walmart Great Value batteries I would buy in generic batteries if they are an improvement but Energizer bateries are also rated good for expired low leakage corrosion batteries I find to be helpful also in buying them (I forget some batteries in electronic devices I have replaced with a better equivalent).
I just purchased some Best Buy brand batteries. Can you do a test on those and see how well they work? I bought a 48 pack of AA batteries for about 14 or $15 so I'm hoping they are a good brand.@@GoTechGeek
Firstly, thank you for this test & your time taken. In the future please also do a “storage time” test.., under hot, cold, humid, indoor exposed conditions (nothing “unrealistically extreme” though) to see: 1- which ones held a (usable) charge the longest? 2- which ones, if any leaked? I used several brands, all alkaline and was very disappointed to find out that both the “Duracell” & “Amazon” brands, after about 1.5 years of non use storage, stored indoors, but in non heated garage (so exposed to hot & cold temps & typical humidity), upon inspection both brands leaked BADLY. The Amazon brand batteries leaked so bad they totally ruined expensive A/V equipment of which i was unable to take apart to clean/ replace springs, re-solder connections, etc. The Duracell (surprisingly) leaked the same way. The Duracell also puffed up, leaked & completely corroded a printed circuit board beyond repair. I should note that these were their top of the line alkaline batteries, both AA & AAA size. I understand its not usually good to leave batteries in this long, but it does happen, and ruining equipment due to leaking really sucks to say the least.
Perfect. Had the Voniko in my cart as I need AAA today and it can deliver today but I was worried they would suck since they're pretty cheap compared to the name brands so thank you!
Thanks! It was super fun to do that experiment. Honestly I didn't know what to expect but I did think that the name brand would perform better than they did.
There is no way those Panasonic batteries were real Panasonic. Panasonic makes some of the best batteries in the world. They are known for making great batteries. I suspect you got counterfeit Panasonic batteries. You should buy a few packs of Panasonic batteries and retest them. Also did you Panasonic Carbon Zinc or Alkaline batteries? There is a big difference. I totally agree that Duracells' are trash. I used to buy them all the time and in the last 5-10 years they have gone from one of the best to the absolute worst. (And they leak!) I also agree the Energizers are very good.
Panasonic makes batteries for some name brand companies, so imagine they’re not going to have their nameplate brand out perform the likes of Surefire and Streamlight. Car batteries are made by only a couple of manufacturers and then rebranded to some supposed specific specifications for different name brands, so I imagine these batteries for electronics are similar.
Those would be high drain... but on the lower end of high drain probably. It is hard to give a definitive answer though without knowing how much power the device draws.
I REALLY thought that for a while, but I ended up testing multiple batches from different stores and doing multiple tests. It is still possible that it was just unlucky and I got multiple bad batches but at least for my tests the Panasonic were surprisingly terrible.
@@GoTechGeekI found your video and was intrigued, then I had a look at the amazon listing. The package says they're Carbon-Zinc batteries, not Alkaline (amazon is wrongly stating they're alkaline in their technical specifications, they're not). It's an old, old technology of batteries which performs very poorly compared to Alkalines, as you've found out. E-Circuit LD is probably also Carbon Zinc. Why they're still built and not even sold much cheaper baffles me.
Also, the keywords "heavy duty" or "low drain" both usually refer to carbon zinc, it's really a technology of battery from the early 1900's! From what I gather, they're still made for dirt-cheap gadgets, cheap toys and extremely disposable situations (i know they're still used in barricade lights, those batteries get swapped every month or so!). Carbon zinc have a short expiry date, they will go flat by themselves, and they don't even provide much current or advantages except their low manufacturing price. Selling them next to Alkaline batteries, at Alkaline price is a shady practice from the stores / battery brands. (rant over)
I would not mind doing the same test with NiMH as well. I did alkaline for a couple of reasons; 1) it is still the most commonly purchased battery. 2) I bought these all with my own money... I know batteries don't cost a lot but it adds up. NiMH is more expensive.... if I ever recoup the money from making this video maybe that will be a good follow-up. Thanks for your suggestion.
Not sure why you think I was paid for it. I bought all the batteries, battery tests, and fans with my own money. I am still in the hole for making this video. I thought it would be a fun test to do.
@@GoTechGeek Oh I thought when you said it was an affiliate video, with a link to the batteries that you recommended, that it meant you may have been commissioned to do it. Forgive me, I don't know how making money on YT works.
I think that we are all assuming a level of consistency here when there might not be one. We're assuming that every batch of batteries they sell is the exact same from each company when it might not actually be that consistent. If now, 3 months later, you were to replicate this exact test, I have a feeling you might find at least somewhat different results. They may even be turned completely on their head and Allmax may be at the bottom. Other videos testing out the same brands of aaa have found different results but at different times. The consistency may change between each year, or maybe each month, or each day, or maybe even between each battery. Until a number of similar tests are done in order to check how consistent and reliable these findings can be, we won't actually know how genuine and useful any of these findings really are. These findings may genuinely be useless if they're found to change from pack to pack. I just want everyone to not make a mistake and to properly interpret what they're seeing here. This is a good video though and I appreciate the effort you put into it.
You are correct with all your points. I did try to test enough batteries to account for the some of the inconsistencies (they are definitely there) but you are correct that the batteries tested would likely be from the same batch. In the same vein, companies might even changes processes slightly after a year or so. The scope of doing a test that accounts for all of these things is just too large for most people to do (unfortunately my channel is small enough as it is and I will be lucky to recoup even the cost of the batteries that I bought, let alone the time I spent putting this together). For me the biggest takeaway with my testing is this: The inflated price of name brand batteries is probably going into marketing and not a better product.
Voniko????? They're a JOKE! It's a low cost battery that lasts about 1/4 the time of Duracells. If you're powering a simple fan, sure it might be ok. But if you need some oomph, like my contractor's head lamp, you need real batteries, not toys.
Thank you for doing this crazy large amount of work.
I just sorted through a box of vintage 2000s alkaline batteries and it was only the Maxwell AAA that still held a charge a decade and half later past their expiration. The tiny Duracell batteries had the same result, but so did some obscure Chinese one…the bigger ones all leaked and even corroded the container
thanks for your time invested here.
Great video. I have used a ton of aaa Duracell and Energizer batteries over the years. Even just recently I purchased some for my TV remote. It seems like those batteries just keep going up in price every time I go to get some. Never heard of Vonico batteries. Ordered some up from Amazon. I did a nighttime bedroom bouncing light of the ceiling test using a Duracell and a Vonico battery. The flashlight I used was an Olight i3e. Nice little key-chain flashlight. The mfg says it put out 90 lumens for 45 min. Well - The Vonico put out a perfect 90 lumen beam for the full 45 min and then dropped off significantly. The Duracell put out a good 90 lumen beam for 12 min and then dropped off to about a 40 lumen beam that lasted for 2 hr+. I'm going to see how the Vonico aa do. Hope they work as well.
Yeah. I didn't run any AA test but I assume the results should be the same. You should reply when you find out, I would be interested to see how consistent manufacturers are with different sizes.
Thanks for commenting this! It’s hard to get any valuable information from reviews on Amazon. It’s either praise for those who just got them for the price or people complaining because they were the few who had a bad experience. It’s rarely comparative in an objective way.
Oh, my PKCell...
I understood that reference
I always thought it was "OWW my PKCell" but it must be the Aussie accent to my American ears.
PKcell AAA!!!
@@Green_Speedme too 😅
@@Green_Speedsame here
I have been using Voniko for 2 years and can confirm they don't last as long as any energizer battery but they are close enough that it saves us money in the long run still. So what I do is use them where its easy and fast to change batteries but anything that is high up or important like security cameras I use long life energizer like lithium and or energizer max hope that helps!
you are 100% spot on.....my logic too !!
Terrific study.
What about AA batteries? Can you test? Or do you think the same brands would be top performers?
Wow sir you really did your homework on these batteries thank you for taking one for the team 👍
Thanks. Please do rechargeable batteries with how long they hold a charge, #of times to charge, plus all of what you did with the regular batteries in this video. Thanks again!!
Eneloop is best battery. 😮
Great video, I'm not sure where Home Depot brand would rate but I'll try Voniko when I run out :)
Thank you. Best review ever. Since i have never heard of vonico or whatever other brandless, it was great to see the branded batteries performances.
Been watching so many battery test videos and not one has came to the same conclusion. So seems like we need to get a better avg score.
Thanks. I was on amazon to restock my duracell as I have been doing for years. Then, I started to think that I should ask google for best battery. I'm glad I found your test. I will not buy duracell any more :-)
You are brilliant! Thanks for your thorough job.
Thanks for your work, and thanks for getting right to the information without any wasting of time!
I also have found Energizer plus batteries long enough lasting for low drain and higher drain electronics of all the batteries I buy over the years. Vonico or Walmart Great Value batteries I would buy in generic batteries if they are an improvement but Energizer bateries are also rated good for expired low leakage corrosion batteries I find to be helpful also in buying them (I forget some batteries in electronic devices I have replaced with a better equivalent).
The Billy Crystal from The Princess Bride killed me 🤣 exactly what went through my mind!
Thanks!! What is best battery for a water detector... I don't want to change out ideally for 5 +years
What a great video. Thanks so much for taking the time to do it!
Great job man.
Thanks! That was a fun video to make.
I just purchased some Best Buy brand batteries. Can you do a test on those and see how well they work? I bought a 48 pack of AA batteries for about 14 or $15 so I'm hoping they are a good brand.@@GoTechGeek
The hero we never knew we needed.
What a useful video. 🙏🏽 thanks for taking the time to
Firstly, thank you for this test & your time taken.
In the future please also do a “storage time” test.., under hot, cold, humid, indoor exposed conditions (nothing “unrealistically extreme” though) to see:
1- which ones held a (usable) charge the longest?
2- which ones, if any leaked?
I used several brands, all alkaline and was very disappointed to find out that both the “Duracell” & “Amazon” brands, after about 1.5 years of non use storage, stored indoors, but in non heated garage (so exposed to hot & cold temps & typical humidity), upon inspection both brands leaked BADLY. The Amazon brand batteries leaked so bad they totally ruined expensive A/V equipment of which i was unable to take apart to clean/ replace springs, re-solder connections, etc. The Duracell (surprisingly) leaked the same way. The Duracell also puffed up, leaked & completely corroded a printed circuit board beyond repair. I should note that these were their top of the line alkaline batteries, both AA & AAA size. I understand its not usually good to leave batteries in this long, but it does happen, and ruining equipment due to leaking really sucks to say the least.
Have you done a test for lithium’s ?
Which one should I use for my personal pleasure device😊
Test Harbor Freight Thunderbolt Edge batteries. Great hang for your buck, but I want to know how they compare. Great Video!!! Keep up the great work!
Thanks for your reserch)
I just learned Rayovac is owner by Energizer! Engerizer is goat
Thanks, I need new batteries for some stick on lights those Vonikos should be perfect for the job.
Perfect. Had the Voniko in my cart as I need AAA today and it can deliver today but I was worried they would suck since they're pretty cheap compared to the name brands so thank you!
Is the Panasonic general purpose battery alkaline?
Thank you for sharing this great information ❤
Thanks!
Is the voniko lithium or alkaline? Big price difference.
Great video, nice job.
Thanks! It was super fun to do that experiment. Honestly I didn't know what to expect but I did think that the name brand would perform better than they did.
Which triple AAA Batteries would be best to get for a Portable Radio
Radios are low drain so the Eastar would be good for that. amzn.to/3CD5GJ7
Thanks for your effort. Excellent.
Not including Home Depot brand batteries was a miss. Several other videos have shown them to be excellent.
Thank you!
@GoTechGeek would it be possible to add VARTA cells ? suppose to be good
When I was a kid, Varta was always top notch, if you wanted quality you would buy those. Don’t know if it’s still the case
Thank you!!
Not sure where you got the Panasonics, but I've gotten fake Panasonics and Energizers on Ebay before.
I’ve seen them at 99¢ stores
Panasonic battery 🪫
There is no way those Panasonic batteries were real Panasonic. Panasonic makes some of the best batteries in the world. They are known for making great batteries. I suspect you got counterfeit Panasonic batteries. You should buy a few packs of Panasonic batteries and retest them. Also did you Panasonic Carbon Zinc or Alkaline batteries? There is a big difference. I totally agree that Duracells' are trash. I used to buy them all the time and in the last 5-10 years they have gone from one of the best to the absolute worst. (And they leak!) I also agree the Energizers are very good.
Panasonic makes batteries for some name brand companies, so imagine they’re not going to have their nameplate brand out perform the likes of Surefire and Streamlight. Car batteries are made by only a couple of manufacturers and then rebranded to some supposed specific specifications for different name brands, so I imagine these batteries for electronics are similar.
What about holiday decorations? Like battery operated lights?
Those would be high drain... but on the lower end of high drain probably. It is hard to give a definitive answer though without knowing how much power the device draws.
"whatever this is" lol
voniko AAA have 936 mah and stop time at 3:18, good choice
Give me a synopsis of the video please. I don't understand English and I use a translator😅
Synopsis: Buy generic batteries. Name brand batteries are not better and cost more money.
buy: Voniko
You mean to tell me that a great value battery is actually a great value....
MY PKCELL😢 NOOOOOOO!!!
Are you sure the Panasonic wasn’t just defective?
I REALLY thought that for a while, but I ended up testing multiple batches from different stores and doing multiple tests. It is still possible that it was just unlucky and I got multiple bad batches but at least for my tests the Panasonic were surprisingly terrible.
@@GoTechGeek Interesting
@@GoTechGeekI found your video and was intrigued, then I had a look at the amazon listing. The package says they're Carbon-Zinc batteries, not Alkaline (amazon is wrongly stating they're alkaline in their technical specifications, they're not). It's an old, old technology of batteries which performs very poorly compared to Alkalines, as you've found out. E-Circuit LD is probably also Carbon Zinc. Why they're still built and not even sold much cheaper baffles me.
Also, the keywords "heavy duty" or "low drain" both usually refer to carbon zinc, it's really a technology of battery from the early 1900's!
From what I gather, they're still made for dirt-cheap gadgets, cheap toys and extremely disposable situations (i know they're still used in barricade lights, those batteries get swapped every month or so!).
Carbon zinc have a short expiry date, they will go flat by themselves, and they don't even provide much current or advantages except their low manufacturing price. Selling them next to Alkaline batteries, at Alkaline price is a shady practice from the stores / battery brands.
(rant over)
@@jordanwaeles Interesting stuff. Thanks for your great comment!
While I applaud your effort, I am curious why you would want data for alkaline batteries instead of NiMH batteries. NiMH is much better.
I would not mind doing the same test with NiMH as well. I did alkaline for a couple of reasons; 1) it is still the most commonly purchased battery. 2) I bought these all with my own money... I know batteries don't cost a lot but it adds up. NiMH is more expensive.... if I ever recoup the money from making this video maybe that will be a good follow-up. Thanks for your suggestion.
Thank you for doing this! But given you are paid for it, how can we know for sure that your test is unbiased.
Not sure why you think I was paid for it. I bought all the batteries, battery tests, and fans with my own money. I am still in the hole for making this video. I thought it would be a fun test to do.
@@GoTechGeek Oh I thought when you said it was an affiliate video, with a link to the batteries that you recommended, that it meant you may have been commissioned to do it. Forgive me, I don't know how making money on YT works.
I think that we are all assuming a level of consistency here when there might not be one. We're assuming that every batch of batteries they sell is the exact same from each company when it might not actually be that consistent. If now, 3 months later, you were to replicate this exact test, I have a feeling you might find at least somewhat different results. They may even be turned completely on their head and Allmax may be at the bottom. Other videos testing out the same brands of aaa have found different results but at different times. The consistency may change between each year, or maybe each month, or each day, or maybe even between each battery. Until a number of similar tests are done in order to check how consistent and reliable these findings can be, we won't actually know how genuine and useful any of these findings really are. These findings may genuinely be useless if they're found to change from pack to pack. I just want everyone to not make a mistake and to properly interpret what they're seeing here. This is a good video though and I appreciate the effort you put into it.
You are correct with all your points. I did try to test enough batteries to account for the some of the inconsistencies (they are definitely there) but you are correct that the batteries tested would likely be from the same batch. In the same vein, companies might even changes processes slightly after a year or so. The scope of doing a test that accounts for all of these things is just too large for most people to do (unfortunately my channel is small enough as it is and I will be lucky to recoup even the cost of the batteries that I bought, let alone the time I spent putting this together).
For me the biggest takeaway with my testing is this: The inflated price of name brand batteries is probably going into marketing and not a better product.
Were these all alkaline or lithium or what? How do we know you are comparing apples to apples here?
They are all alkaline.
I see many comments on amazon that it doesn't last long,Voniko.
Voniko????? They're a JOKE! It's a low cost battery that lasts about 1/4 the time of Duracells. If you're powering a simple fan, sure it might be ok. But if you need some oomph, like my contractor's head lamp, you need real batteries, not toys.
Tt
What would you recommend for something that has live electricity mixed with batterie use
Thank you!