I am a newbie, with that said, I am running cheapo lights. Also, I am running cheapo Asian rechargeable batteries. I have a quick charger on both ends of my commute. I have a 20 minute commute in the morning (dark), and 20 minutes on the return leg of the commute and it is dark too. Also, when the it gets light out, I put the front lights on blinking. So far no problems. Later on and if I move up to more expensive lights, I will get more expensive batteries. From what I have read, Sanyo has the best. They cost more too. My cheapo rechargeable batteries are rated at 1500 to 1850 on the AAA, and 2500 to 3000 on the AA. Like I said, so far so good..