For a certified newbie, 6 channel radio is a good way to expand without too many switches to worry about.
The JR 6102 is a 6-channel radio that is versatile and easy to program. I have a 7-channel version of that, and it has fulfilled all my needs. This 6-channel is especially awesome, because the channels are flexibly assigned. For example, an aerobatic plane that needs 2 aileron channels and 2 split elevator channels but no retract, the 2nd aileron uses the flap channel and the 2nd elevator can use the gear channel. The switches are custom assignable too.
One thing to keep in mind is that nowadays the trend is to add flight packs and using just the same transmitter. So the quality and cost of available flight pack is a consideration factor. JR has quality.
Futaba 6EXAS will work too. It's just not as nice to program. Futaba's flight packs seem to be decent too.
But the Hitec Optic's scan frequency is really nice. It also comes with Karbonite servos, which is much less slop (free play) than the standard servos that JR or Futaba provides.
JR needs to go to $330 7-channel to get scan select feature:
http://www.horizonhobby.com/Products...ProdID=JRP7612
Futaba you are looking at $500 9-channel system that offers this feature.
I would recommend the Optic 6 even though I have no experience with it. After flying for a while, the transmitter appearance don't matter anymore. What matters are functionality.