It's not the hardware that matters, it's the ecosystem. As an experienced embedded systems engineer, I'm used to starting projects from scratch: researching datasheets, writing drivers, test code to understand the edge cases that the datasheets skip past, etc. With Arduino, a lot of that work is already done for you, albeit to varying levels of quality. With arduino I can get some stuff working in an afternoon that would take weeks if I had to start from scratch, bringing up a new CPU, dealing with a bunch of new chips I never used before, etc. And the really great thing is that it's generally abstracted so you can easily swap in different controllers: AVR, STM32, ESP32 and not much changes at the programming layer. Sure, it may not be the fastest, most robust code for a production-ready device, but in terms of hobbyist or lab grade, it's amazing what you can do. More on reddit.com

You are correct there are plenty of options to choose from. We do have some guides in our wiki about how to get started/what to buy . Since you are a total newbie when it comes to computer related stuff, I would suggest getting a starter kit that comes with a number of components that you think you might be interested in and most importantly instructions for building the projects. As for the options for the boards. At this stage you can thing of them like cars - they are basically all similar and do the same job. Sure, there are differences between the different models, but a car is a car is a car. In the case of Arduinos the main differences between the official commonly used Arduino models and the copies is the amount of memory, the number of features on the main chip that runs your program and the physical size of the board itself. If you branch out to other less commonly used Arduinos like the Portenta then you will get a much more powerful CPU, much more memory and it provide more powerful capabilities. If you branch out to other types of systems (that can still be used in the Arduino software environment) such as ESP32, then you get more powerful systems and more memory. So unless, like a car, you plan to work on the innards, as a newbie, they will be all pretty similar. Then there is a whole 'nother category of systems most popular of which is Raspberry Pi. The main difference between something like Raspberry Pi and something like Arduino or ESP or Portenta is that a Raspberry Pi - despite them looking about the same physical size - is that a Raspberry Pi is a full blown computer, you install an operating system (Linux) on it, log onto it and work directly on it. Whereas with Arduino et al you work on your computer (Windows, Mac or Linux) and download stuff to it. You do not work directly on the Arduino as there is no operating system or user interface etc running on it. So, I return to my suggestion of looking for a starter kit that should include everything you need (including some instructions for projects) that can teach yourself the basics - then you can delve into deeper aspects as you so desire. Have a look at the Wiki guides for more information and welcome to the wonderful world of Arduino. More on reddit.com

In my opinion Arduino Mega is the best for a beginner. The '"standard" is Arduino Uno, and Mega is just that but with a couple more pins and features. I think it's best if it's 5 votls. Those are a bit older but there are more compatible modules for them. Also RP2040 is not that common, at least yet. More on reddit.com

buy a decent 3rd party clone in starter set. You can find dozens of different ones, but if you avoid the cheapest (assuming similar components) you won't go far wrong. Buying the board itself is fine, but you really need some components to attach and play with, there's only so much you can do with the built in LED! More specifically for the board itself, Uno is the most often included in the kits, but a nano is exactly the same thing in a smaller form factor. Either is ideal for a beginner. More on reddit.com