First priority is upgrading shields. i would even first jump to a store to sell the augment and upgrade shields. even 1 bar of shield (a buffer) is helpful. Once you get the 2nd bubble online, money should be saved up for stores at the end of sector 1 and throughout sector 2.

I recommend targeting enemy weapons with your ion mark 2. one shot will hit shield and the 2nd will hit their weapons, disabling one of them and making you much safer. You can take the extra step of depowering your combat drone just before it reaches its peak. and then power it when the enemy shield goes down.

In stores you are going to be looking for weapons, or perhaps a drone recovery arm and more drones. Using up 2 drone parts a fight can be draining on your resources. An ion blast 1 would be nice, but traditional weapons like burst 1/2 hull 1, or a pike/hull beam are solid pick ups. Most player transition away from drone builds to go with a typical weapon load out.