WHAT THE BANDIT SAYS. I commute all year so have a Diablo for that, its 90% off road and the diablo is fine. I also ride every thurs night all year, we normally get 4 or 5 rides in without needing lights, but the rest of the time they are needed towards the end of the ride. I have a Betty for that, its reliable and lets you ride pretty much as you would in daylight. Lights are just part of the MTB frenzy to constantly upgrade/improve etc, led my clever marketing, its sometimes difficult to differentiate between want and need. Bit like gears I suppose, nowt wrong with 3×7 speed, or 28 rear sprockets, nowt wrong with canti brakes either really…. or 60mm quadra suspension….
Anyway, better to have and not need than to want and not have.