Choosing a machine is a very personal thing and we (not the machines) all have our quirks when we try a new machine out. I like Brother and Brother, Janome and Kenmore all share the same manufacturer. But I also really like the Bernina Deco embroidery machines (they are the "starter" model), I love my Juki, Singer, Elna and Hobbylock sergers mostly because they are all dependable machines and I've never had a problem with any of them. I love my Janome Platinum, it's the machine I take to classes. I'm not fond of Bernina sewing machines and I find Pfaff to be too uptight, when I sew on those machines I get nervous and tense.
So....what I'm saying is, you need to try machines out at your local dealer and when you find one that makes you feel good while you're sewing on it and it has the features you want, then you know it's right. Buying from a dependable dealer is also really important because you need their support to learn your machine and also if any problems should arise.