I'm guessing it's because the appeal of the q-lite is the moonlite mode .So it can be used to go to the bathroom without blowing out your night vision .in general i always perfer a light starting in low anyway .to me it just makes more sense .
if you don't want the moonlight mode than there are other driver options out there that are cheaper that do what you want
The best throwing P60 drop-in uses the venerable Cree XR-E which was made w/ a 90 deg. optic vs. the newer 120 - 135 deg. optics. If you absolutely have to have max throw that is the emitter to use but you will have to hunt to find them. There are custom P60 builders that can assemble whatever you desire. That said, as others have already pointed out a decent C8 or similar model will out-throw any P60.
As to the ‘reverse’ modes used by the MTN Elec. drop-in. The advantage in starting on ‘low’ is simple, you avoid blinding yourself or others when you switch on your light. However, since the drop-in driver has mode memory if you used HIGH last it will come on in HIGH.
True a C8 will out throw a p60. But the thing is, a p60 will quite easily fit in your trouser pocket, while a C8 is a little on the large size.
A well driven XP-G2 in a p60 will throw much better than a smaller tube light or an XM-L2 p60. But still offer good spill beam and lumens.
Int’l Outdoor do offer an XP-G2 p60, but with a slightly lower performing driver @ around 2.3 amps.
If you don’t mind custom building then you could easily make an XP-G2 p60 drop-in using the bare drop-in from FastTech, a Qlite driver and a Noctigon mounted LED.
You could also experiment with a de-domed XM-L2 or even a de-domed XP-G2.
And there is always the XP-E2 as well. Will want lower amps. But should throw well.
All depends how throwy vs floody you want.
How do you hold a boat down?
I have measured current draw on many of these 105c/Qlite drivers and they are very accurate as long as you have a battery that is able to deliver the juice.
You fill it with water so it wont float away. H)