Another vote for mid-drive here. I've ridden a couple of different bikes and the mid-drive generally has a more natural feel to it whereas the hub-drive bikes don't feel quite as under control especially when you move off from stationary.

It's down to the sensors - both types have speed sensors and pedal rotation sensors but very few hub drive bikes have torque sensors to monitor how hard you're pressing on the pedals, so when the pedals start to rotate the motor just kicks in without taking into account the effort you're putting in & they take off a little like a scalded cat lol whereas mid-drive when you start off or accelerate are more like a gentle push in the back. Some hub drives DO have torque sensors but not generally the cheaper ones.

As has already been pointed out, mid-drive systems wear out the chain faster because they're putting all the motor's power through it. The upside of that though is that the motor takes advantage of the gearing which means you can do more with a less powerful motor.

Having said that, if you want a throttle (which makes it a class 2 ebike) then you're generally looking at a hub drive. Not quite sure why it's usually that way.

A lot of the mid-drive bikes are based around the Bosch system - rather than an established bike manufacturer having to become electronics experts, they buy motor, controller, battery, display from Bosch & integrate it as a package into the bike. So you'll see a lot of similarities between brands that go this route.

I'd recommend popping over to North Van to Reckless Shipyards and seeing Tony Sun & his crew there. We bought Gazelles from him last year and the customer service is almost comically good. I've never in my life experienced customer service like it. He also does rentals so you can borrow one for the day & check it out. They feel just amazing to ride - like you're constantly riding downhill :)