first don't be asking what bike to buy over the internet. Now for your price range i would say go used you'll get a better bike for the price. But if you must buy new go try them out and buy the one that feels the best for you.
big hit all of the way i was going to buy one but my buddy had my dream bike for sale so i bought that instead but i would take a big hit anyday over that
Im not speaking out of personal experience, but ive heard most of kona's stuff is pretty over-rated, and the geometry is really oldschool, with not the greatest components, so id say BigHit.