Toshiba AA Alkaline Batteries (40-Pack)

Not rechargeable
Who the hell cares about battery brands anyway?
That’s 12.5 cents per battery before shipping

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Toshiba makes batteries? Well, kind of...

What is it with electronics behemoths putting their brand names on batteries? When did this happen? And why? Is it just territorial brand-peeing? Are there some befuddled souls out there who think a Kodak or Fuji or Canon camera works better with Kodak or Fuji or Canon batteries?

I don’t get it. It’s like if General Motors ran a chain of gas stations, or Thermos roasted their own coffee beans, or Burger King operated their own heart-bypass surgery center. Might as well capture brand loyalty at every step of the experience, I suppose.

I’d bet my last cadmium nickel that all these branded batteries come from the same factory anyway, and just get dressed up in different outfits on their way to the loading dock.

But the good thing is, these gadget peddlers order up huge quantities of their vanity batteries to pack into their cameras or whatever. And inevitably there’s some miscalculation, and hence some overstock, and hence: cheap batteries for all!

So if you’re still not buying rechargeables, here are some bulk AA batteries approximately as good as every other standard AA battery out there. The name on the label tells you less than the price tag.