Yes..the Pro does not like halfdeads..It will not function or hunt properly once they fall off 2 bars..at about 12hrs depending on if you are using your PP button or not, I never do, so I get a bit more life, but not much...maybe another hour...It doesnt matter if you use top of the line brand names or the cheapest alkys you can find, they all perform at the same time/performance level I've noticed, so I buy the cheapest and just swing away!
Beware, The AtPro batt gage is NOT Linear, so it will fool you, you have to estimate your operating time and take care to do a swap before this becomes a problem...Also, check your batt level at the END of a hunt and change them out then if they have fallen off two bars....At the beginning of a hunt, even dead batts will show full bars for about 15 minutes, just long enough for you to get a good ways from your car and spares, Then Boom! No power! What a guy can do, is turn off the rig, pull the batts, warm them up a little, reinsert, and at least get another 15min hunt on your way back to the car for the spares...
The thing is, the Pro just does not like half deads, but these batts still have plenty of usable life left for other things... like my F70, which will run another 12hrs of serious solid hunting stuffed with the Pro halfdeads, or the TV remote, or the garage door sensors, flashlights, games, or whatever...
I go through a 48 pack of alkalines per year...No biggie at all, I dont even worry about it...they cost 25c each and more than pay for themselves in clad/jewelry finds.....I cant have rechargeables around here on account of they would be scarfed up for other things around the house and I would be in a worse situation with no batts at all when I need them!....I would get up early and want to go out on a hunt, and for sure my rechargeables would be missing!
So I keep my batt stash out in my car with my gear nice and ready and safe...
So yeah..just know this about the Pro...change your batts after 12hrs use, do not rely on that gage, dont be so cheap you ruin a hunt and potentially miss the find of a lifetime...We aint doing this Sport to see how many hunting hours we can get for a dollar of batts...its a good rig, one small gold ring pays for the whole season of batts and the rest of the finds are free...!
All my AA's begin their Life in the AtPro, and then from there go on to provide other important duties...So its a real Win Win when you think about it in this context...