I wonder wants a good one around $100 to start off with?
Depends on what you want to do. UHF/VHF handheld radio can be had for 20-30, uSDX or QMX type small low power HF radio is closer to 100. You’ll also need battery, antennas (perhaps tuner) and something to put data in and out (headphones and microphone or cw key or audio interface to laptop) (no idea if it’s good but people use it)
What’s the most engaging? UHF is TV, right? Not sure what you can do much with that except watch I Love Lucy ha.
It’s up for you to decide. On U/VHF you can talk to other people directly (locally) like on HF. But you can also do things that HF can’t provide, or provides with limitations, like talk through repeater (uncommon on HF), or to ISS, or through satellites (HF bounces from ionosphere) or do longer distance communications from mountaintops, or do image transmission or packet radio (HF has less bandwidth). On receive only you can also download NOAA weather satellite images, or whatever else data are emitted by them. You can make your own repeater from two baofengs. HF gets affected by space weather, U/VHF is not, and we’re entering solar minimum. 6m will take you far further than 2m but it’s usually bundled with HF radios
On higher end there’s also moonbounce, but it’s not in the budget category
e: there’s 50 things you can do with SDR only (many on U/VHF) https://blinry.org/50-things-with-sdr/
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A little off-topic, but what is that gear the person in the picture is holding?
there are photos of 16 different radios and a couple of antennas, but the one in thumbnail is Elecraft KH-1
