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This post is on AA/AAA lights, so if you only want to read about rechargeables, move on to the next post.
I prefer headlamps that use AA or AAA batteries. Then when my headlamp batteries are low, I can swap them and have light again in a minute. Many of my trips do not offer any recharging options from a 110v outlet for over a week, I am reliant on the batteries I brought from home. Thus, I want to be able to swap out low battery(s) as needed since I can't just plug the light into an outlet each day.
My favorite headlamp is one I got on a free shelf in Iceland four years ago. Kathmandu, with some help from Google it is the model Raven 26 and no longer listed on the company website. It uses a single AA battery. Most other AA or AAA headlamps take three or four AAA batteries. I like the Kathmandu because it is very light weight, provides adequate light in campsite or tent, and with only one battery it is easy to swap a low battery.
In many of the campgrounds and hostels in Iceland, there are free shelves were people leave stuff that they no longer want or can't take on the plane when they leave, but the things on free shelves are things that someone may still find useful, not trash. This light was left with a used up alkyline battery, I run NiMH rechargeables and swapping a battery was all that was needed.
I think I have four or five other headlamps that use three or four AAA batteries, and a couple of them are brighter but I find that more and more I find I prefer the simple single AA battery light. It was the perfect light on a 12 day backpacking trip last summer.