There are two schools of thought on this. I'm with the start simple and buy for actual needs now.

Why? You won't have any realistic appreciation or idea of what you truly need until you've learned to swim and are comfortable in the water so to speak. When you have with some experience under your belt, your will be in a far better postion to make an informed choice and smart decisions. Especially in the entry phase with heightened enthusiasm stimulating buyer excitement, it's normal to want all the bells and whistles and everything you see NOW, none of which you can or will actually use or need for an aeon if you're anything like the rest of us.

So pick your brand, and by all means buy a computer radio, but start basic with a 4 or 6 channel unit and learn to configure and use it properly first. Most people won't use more than 4 channels for ages, and won't understand let along touch mixing, rates, expo etc either. Leave the bells and whistles and fancy stuff and concentrate on learning the basic skills well first. If you want a little more potential than a base 4 channel simple computer radio, still inexpensive, a JR X631 XP622 or even a X2610 or their equivalents in Futaba if that is your preferred brand are very capable and will do a great job without spending a fortune.

Welcome, good luck and have fun.