Recommend me an e-assist bike?

A mate of mine is looking for a commuter bike as he’s unable to drive for a while. He’s on a tight budget and “wants something to help with hills.” I’ve suggested that this is what gears are for, but he’s come up with this:

https://www.halfords.com/bikes/electric-bikes/assist-crossbar-hybrid-electric-bike-2023—blue-204603.html

Can the hive mind suggest something similar / better at around that sort of price point, or is this a reasonable purchase? It’s not an area of cycling I know anything about.

Thanks in advance.

Going to be tricky at that budget – I would have said the Carerra’s but they are nearly £1k.

Remember, maximum mileage is ideal conditions, so the one linked would probably get him 10 miles. It’s also single speed so will need to rely on more battery.

Again not an area i know much about but i saw these the other day at Merlin

https://www.merlincycles.com/metroneer-london-eu700-plus-hybrid-e-bike-279235.html

merlin also have an own brand gravel ebike for a little more.. which doesn’t look so … interesting

https://wooshbikes.co.uk/?

Have some sale models but they’re a bit over and one sh at about same money

https://wooshbikes.co.uk/?secondhand

The one you linked to will be shite I bet.  Single speed and tiny battery with a front wheel motor.  Unfortunately given the cost of batteries anything with a half decent range will be more expensive

Metroneer EG 1.0 Comp Gravel E-Bike | Merlin Cycles

that one i referenced above

That E-gravel one from Merlin doesn’t look too bad.

A second hand Carrera Crossfuse? Bosch mid drive, 400wh battery.

Budget is likely going to be the killer here, sadly. Cheers for the suggestions so far.

The Metroneer London EU700 Plus looks ok, but the single speed is going to be a killer if a hill or a strong headwind becomes involved, but the Metroneer EG 1.0 Comp looks far better.

I wouldnt worry about the battery size, my basic E-commuter has the same size and I ‘ve found that fine for a 10-12 mile round trip(Glasgow Battlefield to Glasgow city center) that included a bit of a long hill sometimes encompassing a strong headwind, which seems to take up about 60-70% of the battery.(though I only have 2 gears on mine, so multiple gears would extend that range a bit)

£700 is a good price, but its been at that since mid May, certainly you’ll not find much for that much less and as basic ebikes go it looks not bad

I’ve also a full suss ebike, but finding the basic E-commuter type very versatile and more than capable.

OK, cheers all. He’s gone with the Halfords one. The Metroneer was ruled out as he wants a removable battery for charging purposes (restricted space).