** WARNING **
I had bad luck with a purchase of these some months ago. Some leaked and corroded the contacts of the remote they were in. Others seemed to have very short lives. I would not buy them again. Both AA’s and AAA’s did it at the rate of maybe 2 or 3 per pack, maybe more because after it happened, I threw them out. No idea about the larger sizes. I threw those out too. I don’t want my gear leaked on!
If you’re buying them for Christmas toys or devices that eat AA’s very fast, no worries. But for high reliability or low current applications like remotes, I’d use an American name brand like the Duracell copper top batteries, Rayovac or our old friend, the Energizer Bunny.
While I’m at it, I will mention that even those batteries leak occasionally. The only time this happened to me, an Energizer battery destroying a classic, expensive, FM Sony Walkman. I bet the young ones don’t even know what that is!
Anyway, I sent the batteries and radio to the company. They sent back a “sorry” note, explaining that the guarantee against leakage and offering replacement of the gear, only applies prior to the expiration date of the batteries. So even with good brand batteries, take them out when they get past expiration!
Well, at least you got good Customer Service.
I am really surprised to hear of any issues with these. It is true that any brand battery can sometimes have an occasional leak, etc. In fact we’ve had some leaking issues with some Energizers & AC Delcos within the past few years, but have had zero issues with these Sony. It’s now all we buy as we’ve tried them all past few years on Woot and these Sony’s have been by far the Best Bang for our Buck!
YMMV, I guess, Leo. I use a moderate number of batteries, maybe 200 a year. These struck me as more prone to leak than others – normally, I change batteries out yearly from small devices and toys and remotes. Usually I never see leaking batteries but with these, I did, both AA and AAA and they were not used at high currents or abused. But it could just be chance.
PS: “AC Delco” is a GM brand. Does GM actually make batteries or do they buy them, lowest bidder? For that matter, does Sony make these batteries?
Putting potential leaking aside, does anyone know how these compare to Duracell or Energizer? I’ve had good luck with the Kodak batteries in the past, but I haven’t used these before.
According to the packaging on both brands we’ve tried through Woot, the AC Delco batteries are a licensed deal where somebody has simply licensed the “AC Delco” name. According to the Sony batteries we’ve received (and as listed on the event info page), the Sony batteries are actually “Manufactured by Sony”, Not a licensed deal.
how i feel when Sony batteries are back on WOOT!! Wors Great for my xbox one controllers and headphones.
I bought these in two packages for 14.99 each back in December, 2013. I am still using them in many different devices and am quite content. They seem to outlast the Duracell/ Energizers, but I can’t speak to Kodak, as I haven’t used those. I have had no leakage problems. For the price, I think they are a good deal.