Help me decide between beginner mistakes [v2]

The trade-offs here are not obvious to me and I keep flip-flopping. Long-time lurker, first-time poster. Quick context: I am relatively new to this and trying to find my footing.

For context, I am working with a pretty modest budget so high-end suggestions probably will not land. This came up at a meetup recently and the room was split, so curious what the broader community thinks.