They are your common everyday battery which constitutes the overwhelming majority of batteries sold. They have a good shelf life up to five years and are excellent for low drain devices like clocks, remote controls, smoke detectors, carbon monoxide detectors and emergency torches. There strength is their ability to hold their charge for long periods and as a result are very good for critical systems like smoke detectors and torches. You should also note that alkaline batteries provide 1.5 volts of current where as rechargeable batteries provide 1.2 volts. So sometimes if you need to use multiple batteries, say 4 or more, for a product it might not be possible for the product to work with rechargeable batteries because their is not enough voltage.

These batteries are functionally obsolete and have been replaced by alkaline batteries. They just don't last as long and are not suited to continuous use. Choose alkaline cells instead.

These are a newer battery type. They were designed for high drain devices portable devices like mp3 players, digital cameras, R/C motorized toys and are also lighter than traditional batteries. They also have a very long shelf life up to 10 years. This makes them an excellent choice to use in smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors or your emergency torch.
They are also expensive and at present even the EverCharge cannot recharge Lithium batteries, which even though they can last longer than alkaline in a one off use, without the ability to be recharged makes them just another longer lasting disposable battery and not cost effective.

The Pros
Rechargeable batteries are very cost effective with some of the newer Ni-Mh cells you can get up to 1000 recharges (absolutely awesome performance) The technology being put into their development is increasing capacities almost quarterly. Ni-MH and Ni-Cd tend to keep a constant voltage until near depletion where it drops of quite quickly so you get optimum voltage through the majority of their charge cycle. This is great for high drain devices like Mp3 players and portable cd players. They can also deliver a strong current when needed like when using a flash on a digital camera.

The Cons
Rechargeable batteries tend to lose their charge quickly when not in use. For example Ni-MH losses about 3-5% of their charge per day when not in use Ni-Cd around 1-2%. For this reason they are not recommended for critical devices like smoke detectors, carbon monoxide detectors and emergency torches. Rechargeable Alkaline Manganese or RAM batteries do not suffer this loss of charge.
Also Ni-Cd and Ni-MH batteries have a voltage of 1.2 volts where alkaline and RAM have a voltage of 1.5 volts. This leaves a voltage deficit of 0.3 volts per battery. If a device uses 4 or more batteries this can create a voltage deficit (4x0.3=1.2 volts) and may or may not be able to operate the device. You can only try and see if it works. Again, Ram batteries are not susceptible as they have a voltage of 1.5 volts.

The Pros
Ni-MH was designed to replace Ni-Cd and offer superior performance. They offer higher capacities which means they can last longer between charges. They don't suffer same memory effect as Ni-Cd do. They have many recharge cycles up to 1000 recharges and this makes them very cost efficient. Since they tend to keep their voltage fairly constant until they are near the end of their cycle and then the voltage drops off quite sharply they are good for high drain devices like MP3 players, portable cd players, and digital cameras. They also have the ability to deliver strong current when it is needed and if you have a digital camera and are using a flash this is where Ni-MH batteries shine (no pun intended) standard alkaline batteries struggle here you need to use high demand device alkaline like Duracell Ultras
The Cons
As good as Ni-MH batteries are they do have some limitations. For starters, Ni-MH lose their charge fairly quickly around 3-5% per day. This means that a fully charged Ni-MH will be flat in around 2 months even though it was never used. For this reason you should not use Ni-MH batteries for critical function appliances like smoke detectors, carbon monoxide detectors or your emergency torches.
As mentioned above since the voltage is lower 1.2 volts devices that use 4 or more batteries may not work because they lack the required voltage.

Ni-Cd batteries have been around for awhile now and for the most part they have had their day. They are contain heavy metals and must be disposed of through a battery recycling facility as they are hazardous to they environment. You should consider using Ni-MH instead as they have better life, higher capacity and don't require and special disposal instructions.
However, if you are still using them the EverCharge is well equipped to keep them in their optimum condition. Ni-Cads maybe susceptible to a "Memory Effect" which comes from charging them before they are drained. The EverCharge always discharges Ni-Cd batteries before charging them to prevent this "memory effect"
Ni-Cd batteries also should not be overcharged as it will either reduce their capacity or it will render them useless. The EverCharge can handle the quirks of charging Ni-Cd batteries using its "smart charger" features to protect against overheating and using trickle charge to keep them at their optimum level.
All in all Ni-MH are a better and more environmentally friendly choice.

Rechargeable Alkaline Manganese batteries were meant to be the best of both worlds, both being rechargeable and having the increased voltage 1.5 volts as opposed to the 1.2 volts of Ni-MH and Ni-Cd.

The Pros
RAM batteries operate at 1.5 volts just like your traditional alkaline batteries and just like alkaline batteries they have up to a 5 year shelf life. So they become a rechargeable battery that is suitable for emergency device use. They also can be used right off the shelf, no need to for a first time charge.

The Cons
Ram batteries do not have anywhere near the recharge cycles as Ni-MH around 50 cycles also they tend to drop off in capacity much faster. They also need a special charger to charge them. Do not place RAM batteries in a charger that is not equipped to charge RAM batteries or the will explode. Fortunately, the EverCharge is capable of charging RAM batteries as well so this is not an issue. Use the EverCharge on the Alkaline setting where it uses a pulsed charge with feedback setting which is required for RAM batteries.