What does e² give Palm OS users for 23% more cost?
10% more battery life.

Battery Life Results:
Energizer - 18 hours, 25 minutes
e² - 20 hours, 12 minutes

e² wins by 107 minutes (9.7% longer life)

In June, 2000, Energizer released a new series of alkaline batteries called "e²". The packaging claims "advanced titanium technology and construction that delivers stronger, more powerful performance" vs. ordinary Energizer batteries. The question on every Palm OS user's mind is simply whether the AAA e² lasts longer or not, a question that is not really addressed by the packaging claim.

To find the answer, Red Mercury Labs put the e² to the test, comparing standard Energizers to the new e²s. The new batteries weren't easy to find in stores. When we decided to do the test, we first headed down the street to the Bucktown Market on Wabansia - a bit of wishful thinking. The Duracells behind the counter were gathering dust. Next stop was Walgreen's on Milwaukee, but before we even got inside, we got kicked out of the parking lot by some woman sitting in a car - that may sound strange, but a lot of weird things go on in that parking lot, so it was probably for the best. Jewel Osco on Ashland was no help - no e²s there either. The Big K-Mart next to the Jewel seems to have an incredible dedication to pervasive crappiness in all respects, and was voted least likely place to find the e². Sure enough, they didn't have 'em. Finally, we traveled to another contender for the title of crappiest store, the Target on Elston. This time, we were in luck. We picked up a pack of standard AAA Energizers and a pack of e²s. Both had year 2007 expiration dates.

Now if anyone is looking for a regurgitation of Energizer's press release, it won't be found here. We don't really care what ingredients are in the battery, and we really, really don't care about the packaging of the e². We care how long it lasts, period.