I had a cheap pair, about 25$, that barely provided any padding but there were at least cycling shorts. Finally, just 2 weeks ago I bought some pearl izumi microsensor shorts. They were 80$ but you could tell where that extra 55$ went too. The padding is much larger and more comforting, wicks away moisture. The materail also just seems higher quality. All I can say is definetly dont skimp on shorts. Youll just end up replacing them. Its been said here before, you get what you pay for basically.