I apologize for such an unrelated advice, but you comparison seems to be unrelated too.

You want to decide between CBR250 and Duke 200?

Then the ultimate answer is to write down what all you expect from your bike A to Z and you -by- yourself will endup with a choice. Coz both CBR250 and Duke 200 are best in their world.

CBR250 - Highway
Duke200 -City

That's why I got a feeling your post was apt though it was related to car

+1; have been advocating this everywhere...but no one wants to do homework; everyone expects other to do a setup job for them

Well, however absurd the comparison people might feel, I feel it is a very legitimate question. But a legitimate question with a very simple answer!

With a budget of Rs. 1-2 lac, there are only 3 *real* bikes you can choose from IMO.
Duke being the one for making your city commute a hell lot more fun
CBR250R being the highway king
R15v2 being the track bike to have.
(No offends to CBR150R / ZMR, the only other bikes to fall in that budget range)

Just because one of the 5 bikes in this price range doesn't come with a fairing doesn't mean it is an incomparable outlaw of some kind.

The above wins don't mean that these bikes are rubbish in areas they didn't win eg.
1. CBR is more than competent in the city.
2. Duke laps the Kari faster than CBR/R15 even though R15 may be more forgiving.
3. R15/Duke being adequate enough for highway use (110-120kmph cruising)
4. All 3 have performed admirably on the toughest roads of them all (Leh, Ladakh) etc.

So it is all about choosing your best compromise, and not which is the best of all (because there is none). It is upon the TS to decide what his requirement is because he is the only one who can do that and then take a pick.

Before I write further, let me clear up few things; this is NOT OFFENDING anyone personally, officially, logically, physically, mentally or by any means. Point I'm trying to say that each bike is designed with certain specifics in mind & no two bikes are the same. And when they're not the same, there's is no point comparing unless they're on the same cadre.

So going by the above two points, either one is confused OR tend to believe C250R is good on both highway & city

Yes, according to the posts made here; from a practical stand point, how does this point help other than when he/she rides on the track?

Right, but how comfortable are they compared to C250R? That's something one has to do a TD; quite few members complain about R15, while a few say the forward leaning posture is bliss. How can we compare a feeling called comfortable?

But so did a Kinetic Honda, Bajaj M80, Yamaha Rx100 & I'm 100% there're so many other brands that survived them. Ok, atleast we can infer they're tough motorcycles. Accepted.

Exactly!!! Unless the bloke comes forward to say his practical needs rather than height, weight, mass & inertia all of us will turn this thread to Kurukshetra!!!

@RG : I was trying to make a general statement so that in the future a query like "Duke Vs So and So : Which is best for me?" doesn't get replies like Swift or Micra! Just because Duke doesn't have a competitor in the 1-2 lac price range doesn't mean it cannot compared with the other bikes in that price range. In fact, there is no point in comparing within the same segment since all streetfighters will be good in the exact same department (i.e. city riding ).

@Somen People cross shop across segments all the time when they realize that what they are looking for might be fulfilled better in a different segment. The only thing constant is the budget. So it is not abnormal to compare Duke to CBR250R (OR R15 OR CBR150R OR ZMR). So it is about time you stopped wondering why people do that (on multiple threads).

P.S.: Just because I called the CBR as the highway king doesn't mean that it is impossible to commute on one. But the fact that I did not call it the city king means that there are better tools for the city. Thats where everyone has to compromise one for the other depending upon intended usage.

ROTFL!!! I agree

May be some kind of FAQ; I like Somen's idea on the CBR vs Duke kind of FAQ, if there's any volunteer for Duke, R15, I can work with them toward these comparison FAQ.

Just because Nano doesn't have a competitor in the 1-3 lac price range doesn't mean it cannot compared with the other cars in that price range. Comparing with the price...wrong way of comparison. This is what I'm trying to say.

As a matter of fact YES, same segment comparison yields us to know which is better than the other. Eg, CBR 600 vs R6 vs Gixxer 600.

This is what should come out in the first place

So @RG, lets have a hypothetical question:

1. I am willing to spend between 1-2 lac on a new bike. And I want to buy a 'fun' bike (try figuring out what that segment is ).
2. I weigh 85kg, and am 5 ft 11.5 inches tall.
3. I am comfortable on all 5 bikes available in that price range. I know because I have TRed them all.
4. Currently I ride exclusively in the city because my current ride is incapable of handling highways to my satisfaction so I have no idea how my usage will be affected after I get the bike but I do intend to take it to the highways.

This is how most people choose. Thats how I chose my current ride (just the budget was lower ). The fact that they are posting a such a 'What Bike' thread means they are unable to narrow it down to a single segment. Thats where people like you and me come in to help them truly understand what will keep them happiest for longest!

I'm not in-game for this

True !!
When some new person talks this kind of words then understood but when a moderator speaks in such tune then i am surprise!!
Don't you think Duke and CBR250 is very different in all aspect??
We see people comparing sports with Cruiser, Crusier with Citybike, etc, we just try to make them aware of the right things!!
Antz all are here to help our brothers!!, but don't you think even after good suggestions by our exp xbhpians, still people keep dragging the thread or keep creating it posts.

infact all questions are already answered in ownership thread, but still people keep asking the same things, Reading Ownership reviews are not waste of time!!It helps alot to get things clear!!

Come on friends lets give them a break. Half of the people dont know what a cruiser, commuter, street bike or a sports bike is. Or rather are not even bothered about it. You cannot have all people damn sure about what they want, if that was the case then no point in having a 'what bike' section.

What Antz said is pretty much valid. That is how majority of people chose their purchase, whether or not it is the right thing is a different question. First question for most is the budget and within that budget they want maximum bang for the buck.

Now bang is defined by different people in different ways. And most dont even know what they want. So we cant ask such people to go and figure out what they want rather we can tell them what to expect from a certain class of bikes and then decide if that is actually what they want.

A person spending 1.5 lakhs would defenitely be tempted to make sure that some other bike is not giving more bang for his buck at 20K less unless that person is someone who is well versed with the motorcycling world and knows his sports bike from street bikes.

Just my two cents, dont intend to debate here, but just that most new comers are here coz they are in crossroads with their decision. The least we can do is try and help them sort out their confusion.

Exactly
Yes Antz is absolutely right, But we never said that why this thread is up, instead we ask the TS to please through the ownership thread so that they can be more clear!!
+100
This is brotherhood!! We all here are more than happy to educate or guide our brothers in right way!!

I stay at Thane and my daily commute is around 90kms (done about 49000kms on my 220 and still a couple of months to go to complete 2 years). Initially thought of the Duke, and later the 200NS for my next upgrade - the N250R also figured somewhere in it - but now have decided, that out of all these bikes, the one best suited for me at the moment seems to be the CBR considering that I don't get into that much traffic for it to matter.

So I'm guessing that you stay somewhere in the Western suburbs and hence, either the Duke or the 200NS would be best for you..I would go with the NS taking into account the larger tank and better fuel economy.

PS: Not a Pulsar fanboy and the NS does not figure in MY upgrade plans

In that case, I wonder what the reason for your activity on this thread was then. Because you neither want to answer hypothetical queries nor do you want to look at actual requirements clearly posted by the TS in the 1st post. (quoted below for better visibility)

@Saru, as @Centaur says, since you will be riding in traffic in most of your commuting time, I would suggest you to pick Duke over CBR250R. What you gain in the bargain is the ability to enjoy the ride on 25 working days instead of the extra comfort on the long ride on 1 day every month. The other slight benefit is that Duke returns slightly better FE numbers than CBR in most conditions. Think about it.

@Somen: Check your PM.

List of responses!! thanks

@Aargee I do Understand!! was my first post ever!! Thanks for the Advice

Thanks for the advice!!! But personally I still need to test ride both the bikes to decide!! I guess thats the best way out!

@Binoy Quite true bro! still a test ride will make life easier!!

Not really!! even first timers will love to experiment dont you think so?

I strongly agree but confusions are part of life and unrelated hence no boundaries!!! as long as it is related here we are talking about two big machines!! no doubt with differences caliber.

@Antz: on the basis of your feed back it again pushes me to go for Duke as that is exactly what I am looking for!

Peace Guys!! I guess that will do!

1]@Antz.bin @Agree with you again!!!

@Vibbs:Respect bro!!! Peace!!

Thanks NS might be a better buy for sure!! But havent kept it as a option...

@Antz.bin: Sounds sweet!!!! Will go ahead with the duke then!!!! further updates once I get the machine!!

@ALL : A BIG THANKS TO ALL YOU GUYS LETS GET SOME PEACE IN HERE!!!
RIDE SAFE!!!!