Does a 1-cell battery in a flashlight tend to have a longer shelf life than 2-cells in a comparable flashlight? Whenever I pick up my 2-cell flashlights after months of non-use, they're always dead. Meanwhile, my 1-cell flashlights work fine.

Is it just my luck or is there a theoretical explanation? For example, does the 1-cell flashlight naturally short a circuit to contain energy efficiently within the single battery, while such containment is not as pure for 2-cells touching each other? Of course, I'm talking about keeping the 2-cells in there as normal, not reversing a cell or doing some other trick.

Nowadays, I buy 1-cell flashlights exclusively since the advent of LED. Personally, I've never in my lifetime needed more emergency light than what the modern 1AA LED flashlights provide. I don't dispute that some folks need more light. Another advantage is a 1-cell flashlight is as simple as you can get, battery-wise. For me, simple is better, unless there is a compelling reason to go more complex. Also, I find myself bringing a 1-cell flashlight with me, while the bigger flashlights are stored away somewhere, no matter how cool the bigger flashlight is.