I agree. I've had good service from the Ray o Vac alkalines and they are usually priced better. Rechargeables are good if you detect a lot, but they die very quickly at the end of their cycle and most lose a bit of their charge per week while not being used. Most detectors built the last few years give good battery life, especially when using headphones. I've stuck with the alkalines as they've done me well. If battery life becomes a problem I'll be very happy as that will mean I've been doing a lot of detecting.
Dig deep and often,
Bill