When I started, all my friends were already gaping and they told me to go straight to mechanical mods. Their reasoning? They all had ego's and they thought mods were better, and you can get clones (knockoff ones) for about $40-60.
I bought one and it's the best decision I could have made, if only because mods have less parts to break when I drop it! But for ease of use/recharging, an ego is probably the way to go. You can still customize your vape by buying different drip tips, tanks and atomizer systems!