There was a blog post/article in my local paper about these yesterday and I spent some time online looking at the products mentioned. I'm also curious enough that I might take one for a test ride since there's a local shop that carries them. http://www.baltimoresun.com/features...,3729617.story

Looking at them online, though, I was struck by the tradeoff--sure, you get an electric assist for hills, and I was thinking that it would be a nice thing to have on my commute to work--11 easy miles of rolling to flat terrain and two miles of straight uphill slog. But is it really that much of a benefit when you're dragging a LOT of extra weight around during the times you're doing the pedaling yourself? I think that the slight uphill from my house for the first mile of my commute would be nearly as difficult as that two mile slog if my bike were 50 pounds (the weight of the eZee urban commuter bike). I think the temptation for someone starting out who isn't already in good shape would be to skip the pedaling and only use the motor. If the goal is to have a more environmentally friendly mode of transportation, there's nothing wrong with that. But if someone wants to get into shape and thinks the e-bike will ease them into cycling, I think they'd do better to start with a lighter bike and get into shape the old fashioned way.

Sarah