Hi nycmessanger,

Each of the bikes you are considering has the potential to be a great bike for you. I am not wanting to come across as a "Quick fanboy' - so I will acknowledge that my son has a Trek FX 7.3 (back from five years ago when they came with a Deore rear derailleur) and it seems a really good bike.

I think the standard advice is to try them out for as long as possible (and in my case in fairly quick succession - my recollections fade fairly quickly over short time frames!). I suggest you also consider:
~ does your riding require front shocks? In my case I decided it did not - if necessary I would choose a wider tire;
~ do you need disc brakes. Personally I do not intend to cycle much in the rain and decided traditional hub brakes were more than adequate. Even if I did cycle in the rain I would want to investigate pros (stopping reliability) against cons (weight, complexity of adjustment)
~ confidence in the people you are dealing with re each bike. In my case all were local bike stores, the Cannondale was at the closest bike store (possibly marginally below the others as regards my perception of customer service - but as I commented above I became emotionally attached to the bike)

Good luck with your decision.

As for myself, weather forecast is good for tomorrow, I will try to get a ride in before we leave for a family weekend at the Stratford Shakespeare festival!