In this case "best" battery performance is not subjective unless there is a hidden agenda. As an Engineer I can tell you "best" battery performance can easily be quantified by lab and field tests. Would you like me to post a voltage discharge curve quantfying the differences I'm talking about. The perfomance of one manufacturer’s nominal voltage of 9.6 volts packs may well exceed another manufacturer’s nominal voltage packs when placed under load. We both know there are major differences in performance between the types of cells I previously mentioned and the less expensive ones.