ebike technology, general perspective
 

Hi,
I've never ridden an electric bike before but I'll probably end up with one eventually at some point in the future (for the moment the price is prohibitive). I'm curious, has the technology changed much in recent years and are there clear signs of continuous evolution? Are designs improving all the time, battery life extending, weight reducing etc., or are the general designs well established and unlikely to change much? In short, I know nothing about ebikes and am looking for a quick summary of where the technology is at and where it looks like it'll be in a couple of years time.

Batteries in general are a lot better than they used to be, but its hard to really improve on an electric motor, it pretty much does what it says in the tin. We're seeing something of a resurgence in interest in them over here lately, probably something recession related.

Bionx has evolved. The new 48 volt system has a lighter hub motor and the range is better than the older units.

The technology is better than it has ever been .... duh. It seems like several companies are poised for when gas hits $5. If that happens while our economy still stinks, my crystal ball says commuting on electrics will be a fairly common sight in the warmer climates. Unless I get a better paying job, my old clunker will become a winter only vehicle. I'll need an average speed of 20 mph to get to work in an hour.

How about price? Are there signs of a shift in either direction? The price of raw materials has been heading upwards for several years now but perhaps if the market is growing there might be downwards pressure on prices. Or the opposite, if there's only a couple of small companies making this stuff.