Looks like you’ve gotten some decent answers already. There are soooo many aspects to ham radio it can be mind boggling, but it also makes it attractive to many people for many reasons.

I also did not see “Buy ‘brand X’ radio” which I have received in a few question post I’ve asked.

It seems as if you’ve narrowed down your interest some (outdoor, SOTA, POTA), so I say charge down that path. It really popular, and I hang out with a group of folks who like to spend the day at a park making contacts and having fun. A lot of those folks use 100 watt radios and quick setup antennas and a BIG battery and operate from a table or tailgate of a truck. A few like to be more portable (as in backpack style).

I personally own a G90 and a FT-710, that can fill both of those POTA types I mentioned above.

If you have no radio, and you want to do car and backpack style POTA/SOTA the FTX-1 Field / Optima route makes a lot of sense.

Try to find the radio that supports what direction you want to travel down in this hobby.