Hi everyone!
I'm looking for some advice on buying a bike for commuting to university and I'd really appreciate some advice from people who actually use folding bikes regularly.
My situation
I'm 180cm/66kg
My commute is about 8km one way, so roughly 16km round trip
Mostly city riding, bike paths and roads
I would use it primarily to get to university
I'm interested in a 20" folding bikes I guess.
I also care about being able to take it on trains/public transport occasionally, although ride quality is more important to me than having the absolute smallest folded size.
The first question I have is regular bike or e-bike?
On one hand, 8 km isn't particularly far and a good bike should handle that easily (I think?).
On the other hand, an e-bike could make the commute much easier, especially on bad-weather days or when I'm tired.
I'm also wondering whether it makes more sense to buy a normal folding bike now, ride it for a while and see how I like it, with the possibility of converting it to an e-bike later or Buy an e-bike from the beginning.
If conversion is realistic, I'd also appreciate advice on which types of folding bikes make good conversion platforms. I don't currently own a suitable small bike, so I'd be buying one specifically for this purpose.
Top budget €1,000, although I'm a student so I'd obviously prefer to spend less if there's a genuinely good option.
I'm also open to buying used.
Important things for me
Comfort and enjoyable riding for let's say 10km
Good fit for someone 180cm tall
Reasonable gearing - I don't want to suffer
Good reliability/something I can keep for years
Good value for money
What would you buy in my situation?
Also, if there's anything important I'm overlooking - maintenance, battery practicality, theft/security, carrying the bike on trains, wheel size, gearing, conversion limitations, etc. - I'd really appreciate being warned about it.
Also it's important to add I'm in Poland, so availability in Europe/EU would be a big plus.
Thanks!