If you use lots of batteries frequently, then any of the better brands of rechargeables are worth it, but remember to keep a stash of disposable cells in case grid or other power is not available for recharging.
I do keep a bunch of Duracells around (you never know), but wouldn't a solar charger solve, or at least mediate this problem?
Cheap solar chargers for AA cells are in my experience of very limited use, especialy in winter which in the UK at least, is when they are most needed.
The PV module in such units often only puts about 80ma into the cells and would require 30 hours or more to fully charge high capacity cells, and remember thats 30 hours of bright sun, which might be a month in the winter.
I suspect that the cheaper chargers would never fully charge high capacity cells in winter, the losses and the input are probably about equal!
One could of course use a large PV module, charge controller and a 12 volt deep cycle battery, to power an "in car" type charger, this should give results just as good as grid power.
The investment however would be several hundred pounds or dollars.
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