There is a debate between a carbon-zinc battery and an alkaline battery. As both of them are related in a way. You will find zinc as an anode in both batteries but in different forms.
This is the only similarity between the two. Otherwise, they are built differently and even their development timeline is different.
The zinc battery was first invented between 1876-1886. And the Alkaline battery was invented between 1899-1950, making it the successor of the zinc battery.

While the chemistry is very much different and both of them went through a lot of developments, they are very different batteries with different levels of performance.
We have gathered all the information for you in our Carbon Zinc vs Alkaline battery in this article.
Battery War: Carbon Zinc vs Alkaline Battery

With modern technological advances, carbon-zinc batteries have also evolved. There are devices that require less power and run on carbon-zinc batteries, which you can gladly use. Using a better brand would be the right way to go. But an alkaline battery will always outrun a carbon-zinc battery in safety, longevity, and capacity.