I'm looking at a bike to commute on. I already have a road bike, but I'm not sure if it's the best thing to be using. I'm certainly going to try it and have all the gear to do it. Maybe it's a bit of n+1 but I'm looking at a dedicated commuter.

My commute will be 33Km each way and I've ridden the route but unloaded. It's a combination of roads and bikeways. I plan on shortening it at first.

So I never really considered the internal gear systems so I don't know a lot about them. In general I was looking for a bike a little more upright than the road bike (so I can look around easier), with disc brakes for the wet and peace of mind, and probably a flat bar so I have more room to fit lights and other goodies. But I still want to travel relatively fast and efficiently as to me it's a long commute and I need some energy for other physical hobbies.

So someone suggested the IGHs, probably the Alfine as it's disc brake compatible. It sounds good, particularly the lack of required maintenance, so it will save me money in the longer run. My only concerns are the added weight - not a huge concern considering the amount of weight to be lost from the engine. The other concern and the major one is the decreased efficiency of the hub which I've read about. Is it really that bad and should I be worried about it?

I've been having trouble finding places that sell them around here, so test rides are hard to find, especially comparing it to the same bike with standard derailleurs rather than my road bike. I'll keep looking though.