Welcome to e-bikes! Good plan on having a deadline for your purchase. There's SO much info and variety, getting caught up in analysis paralysis is a common issue.
I think 2 big calls need to be made early on and may help you cut the size of the available field big time. First is the call regarding who's going to be getting their hands dirty when these bikes need attention? Would you rely on a dealer, or are you more inclined to be a DIY'er?
Making this call will determine if you are able to shop at on-line suppliers (RAD for instance), or are you going to be limited by the bikes available from your local dealers (more expensive as a rule). Know that many (most?) dealers will not work on anything they didn't sell. One option might be a mobile service available in many, but not all, areas. (velofix.com) These guys are authorized by some OEM's to do warranty work in the field. You can even have a bike shipped to them. They'll assemble it, check it out, and deliver it to you. It's not free, but it's certainly an option for many.
Second, you need to decide on drive type. This is a tuffy. This will require that you learn enough about each to make this call, but after you make it, the field of available bikes will be cut dramatically! There are direct drive rear hubs, gear driven rear hubs, and what are known as mid drives. You could write a book about the differences, so very briefly, The hub drives (gear and direct) will generally have a throttle. This is cool as it will let you use a little throttle to get the bike moving those first couple of feet while getting your balance. Some mid drives have them or can be converted, but as a rule they don't have them. Direct drive hubs are the simplest but are not known for their "sporty" performance. A gear driven hub offers a set of built in reduction gears. This gives them good pick up and their ability to accelerate from a dead stop quickly/easily, and climb reasonable hills make them attractive to many. The mid drives are likely the most efficient, but as they drive through the chain, they require you to be in the right gear and you need to pay attention to shifting while accelerating under power.
That's the tip of the iceberg... -Al
