The road bikes are great for on the road, paved paths, and even some well groomed gravel paths.
Also consider cyclocross bikes for moderate off-road.
Many MTBs (or MTB-like bikes) spend a lot of time on paved roads. It all depends on your goals. Good for a few miles. Beasty for longer rides.
Originally Posted by
notgrowingup
If you buy a wal-mart bike and find out it isn't for you, you won't be able to sell it for much. On the other hand, if you invest in a nicer bike and want to sale, you will recoup more of your money. Also, something to think about it...cheaper bikes from wal-mart tend to be heavier and more difficult to ride. So if you get one of these and decide biking isn't for you, it could be that you aren't using good equipment. So, I say invest if you can afford it. In the end, the most important thing is conquering that last frontier :-)
*This is from my experience...I have a Schwinn Cruiser Hybrid ($200 from Target) collecting dust in my apt because I don't enjoy riding it.
It depends. If you pay $200 for a Walmart bike, you may be able to resell it for $100 if well maintained.
On the other hand, say you go to a bike shop and buy a $1000 bike. In a few years, you'll have troubles selling it for $500.
So, it has a higher resale value, but you've taken a $500 loss on it.
On the other hand, say you buy a nice used bike for $500, and let someone else take that initial depreciation, you might be able to resell it for the same price you paid.
And, if you don't mind doing some maintenance, there are lots of good deals on bikes with a few broken or missing parts, but otherwise very sound bikes. If you keep the maintenance within reason, you may even be able to turn a profit on those.