The very first thing you should know about batteries in general, is that they're definitely all not created equal. What this means, is that they can, and do vary in quality from one manufacturer to another. Makita batteries, on the other hand, are made using only high grade raw materials, and this alone makes a huge difference.
As an example, perhaps you may have gotten your hands on some counterfeit brand name disposable batteries in the past, and wondered why they were junk. The reason for that is simple. In metals refining, and metallurgy in general, high purity levels tend to be difficult to achieve. The raw components in batteries are basically metal based.
Makita Cordless Saw
The Nickel Cadmium or Ni Cad Battery
The nickel cadmium battery or Ni Cad, derives its name from the fact that its electrodes are made from nickel oxyhydroxide, and metallic cadmium. Ni Cad batteries are capable of supplying relatively high surge current levels, due to their low internal resistance, and this is what makes them such a great battery for cordless power tools.
This is the type of rechargeable battery that in fact powered the very first Makita power tools. Also even though they have a more pronounced memory effect than other newer types of rechargeable Makita Batteries, they're still available and in use for one good reason. They're affordable.
The Nickel Metal Hydride or NiMH Battery
The NiMH battery is similar to the Ni Cad, in that they both have a positive electrode that's made from nickel oxyhydride. The difference here though, is that the negative electrode in the NiMH battery is made from a hydrogen absorbing alloy, instead of cadmium. So what's the difference in overall performance between these two types of Makita batteries?
There are in fact a couple of differences, and the first one worth noting, is that the NiMH battery will hold up to three times more overall electrical power than the NI Cad. It also has no memory effect. The trade off though, is that the NiMH battery has a substantially lower surge capacity. They just don't work as well as Ni Cads on higher amperage, power hungry tools.
The Lithium-Ion or LI Battery
Of all the battery types, lithium-ion battery quality is most contingent on manufacturing processes, and the quality of materials used. What this means, is that one tool companies LI batteries overall performance can be lacking when compared to another companies seemingly identical LI battery. This is also precisely why Makita uses only premium grade materials in their batteries.
LI batteries have the highest energy to weight ratios of all three types listed. They also have no memory effect, and a slow loss of charge when they're stored. LI Makita batteries also have a high power surge capacity, and in fact it's even higher than the Ni Cad. Their one drawback however, is that lithium-ion batteries do tend to be the most expensive to buy.