I think that these bikes are much underrated. Whae I was growing up, these were the predominant type of bike, and they still are the "real", or normal bikes to me. Althouge usually dismissed as only soutable for trips of a mile or two, they are better than one might think for long distance riding. When I was 13, I regularly took 16 mile round trips in hilly country with mine. there were some hills that I had to walk up, but most were ridable. In fact,I;ve recently rented a cruiser and child trailer at the beach and made 20 mile round trips towing my daughter in a trailer.
They quite often still can be found with proper chainguards and fenders. This makes them more practical for short distance daily transport that s $2,000 road bike.
Most cheap bikes have crummy, fragile components to make them resemble real mountain bikes or road bikes. In comparison, today's crusers seem built from quality parts. They serve as basic transportation for much of the world.
My bike is just as durable as a cruiser and goes much faster. However it didn't cost $160. You can't beat those things for value.
Paul