I've been thinking about the Downtube Mini versus other 16"ers and always come back to price and gearing. I had an opportunity to ride a Mini and a Tikit, for example, and thought the Mini stacked up great (which, I think, says a lot next to the Tikit). I found it a really comfortable ride even though I would def. extend the cockpit--I'm 5'10" and find it pretty upright stock. I found the 8 gears a good range and would imagine, if you've got those kinds of hills, you'd want all the options you can have.

I was surprised too to see how the Mini looks next to a Brompton folded-wise. There are really good pics you may have seen somewhere here in the forum. In a direct comparison, the Brompton is more tidy, but doesn't seem like it's that much more compact. I wouldn't think the difference would mean always being able to carry the Brompton inside as opposed to the Mini. I could see, however, the stability of the folded Brompton being an advantage in the lab.

My impression is that the Mini could actually mean two bikes for you as opposed to one(the mixte must be pretty cool). That ultimately tilts it in my favor. Well, that and the thought of you eating rice and seaweed repeatedly. Good luck!