Panasonic's EVOLTA: "the longest lasting AA battery cell in the world"

If you're barbaric enough to still use disposable alkaline batteries instead of new generation rechargeables like Eneloops, then you'll be stoked by this news Atouk. Panasonic's new EVOLTA lineup is said to perform "almost 1.3 - 2 times" longer than their existing alkalines. In fact, they now claim to have the "longest lasting AA battery cell in the world." For that, Panny will charge you an approximate 15% premium when they hit the market on April 26th.

[mj @ Apr 10th 2008 7:27PM]

I want to know, where can I get a sample to try? Is there a contact in Japan that can send me a few? Does any one know of someone living in Japan I can get a hold of?

Lithium batteries are dangerous and need special care when disposing of them. Alkalines can be tossed with out damage to our environment.

[navamske @ Jan 16th 2008 9:42AM]

"Ah, ha, ha, ha, stayin' alive, stayin' alive."

[B @ Jan 16th 2008 9:58AM]

We can try to understand the New York Times' effect on man.

[Flashpoint @ Jan 16th 2008 10:29AM]

WOW

6 of these could power my Game Gear for about 25 minutes !

[Jack Storm @ Jan 16th 2008 11:08AM]

they haven't met the wii control

[Eric M. @ Jan 16th 2008 9:51AM]

I'm sorry I don't buy batteries without cute bunnies on them.

[ScareyJ @ Jan 16th 2008 9:55AM]

Now if Hef would loan out one of his bunnies to be placed on this battery, it would be marketing genius! A longer lasting alky with what appears to be a standard 1.5V with a better looking bunny ... I'd happily pay the 15% premium!

[blackmonkey @ Jan 16th 2008 9:52AM]

this is one stupid new line from APPLE, thanks for updating MACBOOK PRO line, yeah.. thanks!

[riggs @ Jan 16th 2008 10:13AM]

some people still have MAC on the brain

[Organic_Shadow @ Jan 16th 2008 9:55AM]

People still use batteries? Interesting...

[Anthony @ Jan 16th 2008 10:20AM]

So you don't have a remote control? I have more & more, even with Logitech. Plus basically every child's toy runs on batteries these days.

However- Eneloop & Hybrio are both great. I have nothing but good things to say about the newer gen rechargeable.

[dsgamer21 @ Jan 16th 2008 10:22AM]

Just about every high school student (graphing calculators).

[Wwhat @ Jan 17th 2008 2:22AM]

As long as rechargeables have the high self-recharge when not even being in use we will need classical batteries.
Although thankfully there is research being done in reducing self-recharge and there are already somewhat better rechargeables for sale in that regard.

[Ricardo @ Jan 16th 2008 9:55AM]

Alkaline batteries are still nice to carry around as a backup, especially since they don't lost their charge over time like NIMH batteries do. So this is indeed very interesting, since it should double the charge and only cost 15% more.

[Anthony @ Jan 16th 2008 10:23AM]

There are some studies (though studies often only lead to arguments) that the newer Eneloop type batteries actually lose less charge than traditional alkaline batteries. I haven't tested this, but we have replaced all our old batteries & now have extra Eneloops floating around in the "everything" drawer rather than cheapy no-brands.

[Joe Commisso @ Jan 16th 2008 9:58AM]

Shouldn't it be the longest lasting alkaline double AA cell in the world. I'm pretty sure my double AA lithium batteries last far longer than a 1.3 - 2 times increase over alkalines.

[Silverfrog @ Jan 16th 2008 10:33AM]

I agree. Lithiums are the pinnacle of non-rechargeable batteries, period. For digital cameras, there is no substitute if you need long-lasting and high-energy. Rechargeables are a weak substitute because they operate on a 1.2 volt instead of 1.5 volts. Camera flashes need that extra .3 volts to recharge with. Granted, alkaline and even alkaline, when they are near dead also drop to below 1.5 volts, but lithium last a long time before that happens. But, then again they also cost $5 for 2, so the costs are gonna be higher.

[Leo @ Jan 16th 2008 10:59AM]

I have 2 battery operated flash (Sigma EF 500 Super and a cheapo old one) that run on AA batteries. I use NiMh exclusively in them and have never had issues. I also use NiMh in my A570IS (which flashes fine) and used to use them in my A70 (also flashes fine).

I don't know what camera flash you're using, because mine run fine on NiMh (and I know that all of Canon's flashes do as well).

[Silverfrog @ Jan 16th 2008 12:25PM]

Leo, I'm referring strictly to recycle time between flashes, when doing a multi-shot photo shoot. Think somewhere in the neighborhood of 100-200 flashes within a short amount of time. Sure, NiMh work "fine", but try comparing them to a fresh set of Energizer lithiums to see the difference during continuous shooting within a dark environment, such as a wedding chappel. This is, of course, negated if you're using a battery station pack on the flash. The flashes I currently use are 2 Canon 580 EXs and 1 Canon 430 EX (slave unit).

[PhishShticks @ Jan 16th 2008 12:59PM]

I'm sure they mean longest lasting alkaline cell...

[Wwhat @ Jan 17th 2008 2:24AM]

Lithium just costs too damn much.

[Simon @ Jan 16th 2008 10:04AM]

Duracell FTW!

[aoeu00 @ Jan 16th 2008 10:05AM]

You mean you have to use your hands? That's a baby's toy!

[Ben @ Jan 16th 2008 10:18AM]

Love that comment. BTTF #2

[chappers2000 @ Jan 16th 2008 10:30AM]

@ Joe Commisso

Agreed. Someone should perhaps have told them about Energizer Lithium batteries, which trounce all AA batteries, NiMh/NiCad/Alkaline/whatever.

[kballs @ Jan 16th 2008 12:11PM]

Those are great for cameras and MP3 players, but for things like flashlights they only provide a little extra runtime but cost a LOT MORE $$$. That's why I typically buy the huge pack of Duracell/Kirkland alkalines at Costco (for running flashlights, IR remotes, etc.) where the lithiums would be a waste of money.

[tkny @ Jan 16th 2008 10:37AM]

seriously, spell check guys.

"disposal alkaline batteries"

"longer that their existing alkalines"

[uberfu @ Jan 16th 2008 10:36AM]

Well - if companies [like Panasonic] would Stop making products that required disposable batteries altogether - even when you can get re-chargeable AA or D batteries they're still a pain in the ass 'cause you have to deal with a pile of them_ Make the products use a Li-Ion pack and re-charge it either straight rom the product that takes the battery or add in a wall adapter [like Sony]

[Martin Trautmann @ Jan 16th 2008 10:37AM]

Advertisement only, and a not reproducible test setup.

It could be that easy to name the capacitance in mAh, together with a link to the test setup (such as 200 mA discharge current, 20 deg. Celsius, down to 1.0 V) - but people might wonder about those numbers, being not much better than rechargeable batteries.

[Kamokazi @ Jan 16th 2008 10:39AM]

Apparently Panasonic's never tried Energizer's E2 Lithium batteries. Depending on the device, I get anywhere from 3-6x the battery life out of them. My vx Revolution gets a month out of a standard AA, four on a E2 Lithium. My Sennheiser noise canceling headphones are the best though. I'd have to replace the AAA battery weekly using them 4-6 hours a day...now I replace them once every few months. They cost about 3x as much, but they last, and they are also a lot lighter than alkaline. (Pick up an 8-pack of them next time you're in walmart and compare them to regular AAs).

[bobbywigs @ Jan 16th 2008 10:38AM]

whatever happened to the B battery?

[Joe @ Jan 16th 2008 1:56PM]

The short answer is that A and B batteries were used in portable vacuum tube radios and had rather non-standard voltages:

http://www.angelfire.com/ma2/AdamVon/tobatt.html

[rafa @ Jan 16th 2008 10:47AM]

Does Engadget realize that 90% of the time links to tags in the article don't point anywhere relevant?

I clicked on Eneloop in the article to see if it pointed to an explanation of whatever the hell it is, and I get 4 articles that talk about using Eneloop batteries. None describes what they do. It's a worthless feature; a distraction even.

[toyotaboy @ Jan 16th 2008 1:47PM]

I've replaced every device that uses a AA with rechargables, and I keep at least 4 charged at all times to swap out so sitting around isn't an issue. Rechargeable AA's now come with 2500mah of power, they aren't weak like they used to be in the 90's. Buying a cell that's going to go dead and sit in a landfill is stupid, not to mention costly.

[kristjan @ Jan 16th 2008 6:07PM]

Sheesh!
Batteries are like so 1999...

[tekdroid @ Jan 17th 2008 5:57PM]

yes, all my portable devices run on free energy
http://www.steorn.com

What's that you say? You're not hip to the free energy vibe?

[kristjan @ Jan 17th 2008 6:07PM]

Nah, I like to drive an engine that drives a generator that powers the engine

[Motoken @ Jan 16th 2008 4:03PM]

how about, instead, they invest in nano-wire technology to get 10x the battery power.... oh yeah... they want to slowly build up to make the most profit possible. *ahem* call in a new company!

[qrius @ Jan 16th 2008 4:24PM]

i use the energizer lithium ion AA batts on my canon camera, and man, it lasts really long. It says 7 times longer than alkaline, so wouldn't that make it the longest lasting, and not this?

http://www.amazon.com/Eveready-Energizer-Lithium-Battery-pack/dp/B0009SW4N4/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=photo&qid=1200518181&sr=1-2

[Nik @ Jan 16th 2008 4:28PM]

1.3 times longer? Wow!

[Ken @ Jan 16th 2008 5:58PM]

I need to get me some of these for my Wii!

[rutsy5 @ Jan 16th 2008 6:14PM]

Eneloops... wtf is that, some kind of caffeinated cereal?

[tekdroid @ Jan 17th 2008 6:08PM]

http://www.eneloop.info/

Do not eat.

Long story short:
Rechargeables with reduced capacity compared to the 2500mAh (and greater) batts out there, but with less self-discharge during storage.

Basically, Average Joe has 2 options in rechargeable land:

1) buy higher capacity Ni-MH and have them self-discharge quite fast if not used for a while (but being higher capacity, they might actually end up having more playtime when used partially-discharged than Eneloops of less capacity)

or...

2) buy lower capacity Ni-MH (Eneloop) and have them self-discharge more slowly. The other advantage with Eneloops is they can operate in cold temperatures far better than traditional rechargeables too, which can't do that well at all. So there is an extra benefit there, too.

In my experience, Sanyo's discharge claims are exaggerated (surprise surprise), but it's a good battery overall. I won't reject a good high-capacity Sanyo tho (they do make the best Ni-MH, IMO).

If rehcarging right before use (and not really storing for 'emergencies', the higher-capacity Sanyos will give you more oomph.

For storage, it's up to you. Higher temperatures will see accelerated self-discharge, so keeping batts cool would help here. Either way it's a choice betwen higher-capacity regular rechargeables or lower-capacity Enelooops to see which ends up with more capacity when you actually go to use them.

For working in lower temps (like in an external flash for a camera in the winter), Eneloops will do it far better than any other Ni-MH.