The most important thing is to ride the bikes a bit and find out which one FEELS comfortable to YOU. There are no clear right or wrong choices between these bikes. Both bikes will work well for casual rides, or commute a reasonable distance to work. For instance, I have a Garry Fischer Nirvanna and it work well for me. My sister and bother-in law this past Summer also had to aquire new bikes. I am the shorty of the group at 6' 2.5" (my sister is a 1/2 taller and my brother in-law is 1" taller). My Brother in-law ended up with a Garry Fischer nearly identical to like mine, my sister was much more comfortable on a Venture series (Mens bike cause non of Womens bikes come close fitting her). Different models will fix one person but no an other comfortable even through they are only 1" appart in height.
Many folks hate front suspension. Personally I like how it smooths out the ride on the sometimes rough roads here in Western NY. I like to the lockout feature and have used it when I've had to go up a long hill to maximize my forward motion when I am up and out of the seat. While riding on flat ground I don't see any performance difference with it locked or unlocked. I commute 10 miles each day on my bike, and put just about 1700 miles on it since April 1st. I have also done a hand full of 30+ mile trips, and next Summer my sister and I are planning to ride from my house 65 miles along the Erie Canal to her house in the Rochester area. I personally like my hybrid, it is a good compromise between the "mountain bike" like cruisers with 26" wheels and an all out road bike with narrow 23 mm tires. I am not worried about a few pounds of extra weight on the bike. I have it loaded down with fenders, rear rack, and hub generator, and for the winter studded tires. What I have is a bike that I can RIDE and that is all that matters.
As I stated in the first paragraph, ride the bikes and find out which one works best for you.
Happy riding,
André