I think your nic level is an important part of getting started. If you smoked a "light" cigarette, then try 18 mg, and drop to 12 if that makes you feel wired or jumpy.
Otherwise, I can tell you that I have found the Aspire brand to be reliable and long lasting. I have eLeaf units I've been using for years and years, but there are other Aspire varieties. The starter kits come with a recharger and wallwart. I just passed my 8 year anniversary from my last cigarette. I started with the Ego-T like many newbies at the time. I think I graduated to the eLeaf about 2014. The Aspire glass BVC clearomizer is nice looking, non-leaky, durable, and the replacement coils for it are fairly cheap and long lasting. If you vape a high temp, it may get a bit gurgly, which is resolved by ramping down the heat for a few puffs, then you can turn it back up. Each glassomizer gets its own flange style 510-to-Ego adapter, to eliminate fidget factor. Those are a buck or two apiece.
Since using the eLeaf, I haven't tried anything else. I just don't mess with success, and when you try a new kind of unit, it's a new kind of tank, new kind of coil, etc.
For auxiliary items: the LDPE bottle with needle tip cap makes it a cinch to refill your tank. I buy the bottles, caps and silicone needle tip covers by the dozens, to make my own own personal blend of various flavors of clove, but you may suddenly find that your juice seller has stopped offering certain pg/vg ratios and nic levels due to PMTA woes, another reason for having your own bottles and a cool kit of glass metric lab measuring tubes, so you can manage your own, if it totally comes to that.
Also in the case of nanny government taking away your vape, find a mech mod you like and stock up. I think I about cornered the market on a cheap but reliable mod with a side firing button, using just one 18650 battery, perfectly compatible with my million Aspire BVC glassomizers.
Finally, as you will eventually see, you'll want two needle nose pliers, one with teeth, one smooth. I also have a third mini needle nose that lives in my luggage, for travel, and three European regulated Aspire BVC tanks which hold only 2ml (as compared to the main line which holds 3ml liquid), because EuroNanny is persnickity about that.
Sigh. I always write too much. If you have a hundred dollars lying around, you'll be good to get started, but once you get it all figured out, it gets cheaper, much cheaper than cigarettes.