Superb charge retention - 90% after 6 months, and 85% even after a year, so no need for regular charging to aviod permanent capacity loss required by many Ni-Mh cellsDue to this the cells/packs can be used immediately they are bought, and do not need charging first!Much higher voltage under load, the voltage does not collapse when high currents are pulled, which is an unwelcome characteristic of normal AA Ni-Mh cells.Over double the cycle life of most Ni-Mh cells, over 1,000 cycles are possible!