Batteries are good, though differ from US retail packaging
I purchased this 24-pack of Energizer Ultimate Lithium AA batteries for the superior price, feeling not exactly at ease, however, due to several reviewers here indicating a certain percentage of "dead" batteries they had received as well as other warning signs. I received a nondescript sealed grey bag into which 6 retail packages of 4 batteries each were tightly squeezed, each pack looking quite similar to the 4-packs one can purchase here and in retail stores in the US. Immediately noticeable, however, was the different artwork and color scheme on both packaging and batteries. The US retail packaging features the pink Energizer Bunny on the front right side and has a somewhat vibrant color scheme, while these packs are a more subdued blue-grey and show a "muscle battery" instead of the Bunny. Also, the labeling has additional languages compared to the US retail version: Chinese, Arabic, Thai, German, and maybe more, in addition to the usual English, French and Spanish. Aside from this, both retail and these cells are "Made in Singapore" with essentially identical information printed on them. Certainly curious. For me as a consumer, however, I ultimately only really care about performance. All received batteries carry an expiration date of 10-2043 and show 10-2023 as the apparent manufacturing date, so they appear to be fresh, as advertised. To verify this at least superficially, I tested each individual cell's open-circuit voltage with a precision voltmeter. None are anywhere close to "dead", however there is a somewhat unexpected spread in readings. About half show 1.832 +/- 0.003 Volts, then there is a cluster clocking in at 1.815 +/- 0.010 Volts, and finally 4 cells between 1.785 and 1.800 Volts. (Yes, about 1.8 V is normal for fresh lithium cells.) I think all of these should be considered "full", although some might qualify as "very lightly used/depleted". It is also possible that there is a natural relatively large variation in open-circuit voltage for lithium cells due to unavoidable manufacturing tolerances; I don't have a large enough reference sample to draw conclusions, although the clustering of readings is somewhat indicative that this is not quite so. Maybe some of the cells are B-grade factory rejects? Just to get a better feeling for such things, I measured the output of 40 brand-new AA *alkaline* batteries from a known reputable source: All 40 read 1.673 +/- 0.003 Volts, without any outliers, clusters, or other oddities. But, these are alkaline, not lithium cells. In general, I find lithium cells to be more of a convenience than a necessity or bargain, unless they are subjected to wide temperature swings or very heavy loads. They clearly last much longer than alkalines and so reduce the hassle of having to change batteries all the time. Also, unlike alkalines, lithium cells do not usually leak when forgotten in a device and run empty. But in pure dollar terms per energy unit delivered, alkaline cells are almost certainly less costly. Read more
