I agree with the "Grow Into" comment, regarding the Rigol MSO5074. IF you're doing robotics, Arduino stye micro controllers, or even Raspberry Pi projects, there's a lot to be said for a 4-channel scope with the triggering facilities and built-in signal generator of the MS5000 family with the -BUND upgrade.
THAT SAID, it's a lot to learn for a beginner. Approach it like eating an elephant. Take it a bite at a time.
On the other hand, you're unlikely to outgrow the performance and features of this class of scope for many years.
I chose the MSO5074 for several reasons but mostly because I could get a "Clearance Center" MSO5074 with VERY good digital specs at a significant discount: It was a priced only a few hundred dollars more than a "similar" scope with only 2 MegaSamples/sec.. I assure you, after owning a 1 MegaSample, 2-channel digital storage scope for 5+ years, that a big deal!
You can apply the type of comparison below for your favorite candidates and see how they compare. Just because I chose a "Bargain Department" MS)5074 doesn't mean it's the best choice for you! Something about "Your Milage" is almost guaranteed to be different than mine.
FIGURE OUT WHAT FEATURES AND SPECS ARE ESSENTIAL for YOU and try to be honest, leaving your brand prejudice at the door. I assume every dollar is important to you, but money spent without yielding the required utility is money wasted!
SOME of my criteria:
I chose it because of:
01) PRICE / Performance / Features - i.e. Bang for the buck for MY needs. (Teaching science, robotics, electronics, beginning programming to home-school teenagers)
02) Built-in TWO-CHANNEL AWG for educational and practical purposes
03) AWSOME Triggering options
04) Same AWSOME protocol decoding
05) Available integrated Logic Analyzer
06) 8 MegaSamples per second, vs 2ish MegaSamples per second of other options I considered, especially with 4-channels.
07 200M points of recording, especially with 4-channels
08) Larger Screen than some other models considered
09) FOUR analog channels with INDIVIDUAL controls for the 4 vertical inputs.
10) Help and action menus mostly pretty good. LOTS of information to display and its managed pretty well. Room for improvement? Sure, as always. May be helpful too newbies.
I would NOT chose it for, but can give it a pass for:
01) Ease of operation / learning curve. Going to take some work on your part.
02) Black Color motif. Hard for my old eyes to discern labels in low light
03) Rectangle reticle grid. Should be square like everyone else!
04) DVM function should be at least 5 digit, especially with the great custom ASICS in the vertical front-ends
05) I actually like the way the older series of OWON scopes display measurement data for each channel. MSO5000 is somehow sparse, yet crowded at the same time. I'm still finding my way around the display choices
06) While they seem to meet performance specs, probes are nothing special. A little flimsy.
07) Accessory pricing like scope front panel cover, carry bag, etc. are obscene. Even the Logic Analyzer probe is too expensive, but I don't have time or inclination to fab one myself.
08) No auto-sensing for 10x probes. How much would that have cost??? Seems a shame...
Did I mention PRICE/Performance ratio, especially if you hack???
I DO NOT HAVE complaints about some items others dislike:
1) Display brightness. Measurement Traces and reticle grid have independent brightness, just like an old analog scope. Works for me.
2) General form-factor/weight/physical characteristics are not a problem.
3) Customer Service has been awesome!
4) Missing 50 ohm option on inputs. I have lots of 50 ohm terminators and it's too common to forget to check if someone else changed the input impedance.
Read, test, question. Make your choice and dig in. ANYTHING you buy today is SO powerful than what was available anywhere near these prices even a decade ago!
BTW, I still have my old Tektronix 1970's Model 475, 200-MHz analog scope under the bench, just in case....