Switching to a rechargeable headlamp changed something I didn't expect about my gear setup

I’ve been camping regularly for about six years and one thing I always carry with me are spare batteries for my headlamp. I just felt like it's common sense to have them.

Recently, I switched to a rechargeable headlamp because I was tired of always buying batteries before my trips.

What I love now is how simple packing my bags became.

So instead of carrying extra batteries, I just charge the headlamp before leaving and bring a small charging cable that already works with my phone. For weekend trips that’s usually more than enough.

On my last trip I realised the lamp battery barely dropped at all even after using it around camp every evening.

That made me wonder why I kept carrying backup batteries for so long.

A friend in our hiking group said their outdoor club once looked into ordering gear together to save money. They compared several headlamp models through retail sites and large supplier platforms like Alibaba and Facebook marketplace where manufacturers list equipment directly.

Apparently the price differences were interesting, but the minimum order quantities were way too high for a small hiking group.

So everyone just bought their own.

Now I’m curious how many hikers still pack spare batteries out of habit rather than actual necessity.