>>1147215hm ok. lbs is not a bad idea, especially if they're freindly. you can get good support etc. there are really no bad bike brands, as long as you get something with a rigid fork you're not getting memed on.
if you're semi competent and want better bang for your buck, consider buying online. The risk is they might ship it to you damaged, and it might need work out of the box. you'll have to set it up too and adjust stuff, but that's not hard. you probably want to do the work yourself as the lbs won't be happy about it and will gauge you, but they might be cool. on the upside you will get a much better deal than at your lbs
http://www.nashbar.com/bikes/Product2_10053_10052_572575_-1very decent roadbike, actually has shimano wheels not garbage ones which is the normal complaint of bargain bikes. -$650
http://www.nashbar.com/bikes/Product2_10053_10052_602988_-1good spec touring bike. like a road bike, but with wider gear range for riding slow, wider tires/ fenders (room for very wide comfy tires), rack for your stuff, more upright position, heavier, and more difficult shifters. Both this and above are specced with a modern style crank, you probably won't get that at this pricepoint at ur lbs. close to being a perfect commuter bike imo -$650
http://www.nashbar.com/bikes/Product2_10053_10052_7000000000000002628_-1extremely good deal on an awesome meme bike. Has a shimano front dynamo and a german light, that's unheard of at this pricepoint, and having a *modern* dynamo light is extremely nice on a commuter. It also has a meme rear hub and meme gears. Nuvinci is like a kind of CVT like they have on snowmobiles and scooters except it's manually operated, fucking badass, and i hear good things. On the negative these features make it p fucking heavy and slow and an absolute silly nonstandard meme, but this is your chance for a dutch bike, if you have a shortish flat commute and you want to be comfy, it's a really cool option. -$480
