I have the 350E and truly love it. It has everything that I need. The only issue I have had has been with the bobbin and the thread cutter. It is me, not the machine. Let the machine do its job at the end of the project. Don't jerk it out as soon as it is done, let the thread cutter complete its process and then remove the item. I love being able to personalize items, making my own tea towels and gifts. The most popular item has been the Maxine tea towels.
To me, it is very user friendly. I took it out of the box and was embroidering within 30min. I really like the touch screen. If a thread breaks, you can back up the stitch to before the break so that there are no blank or sparse patches. It has 3 built in fonts and if those aren't enough, you can always download more to use. The USB port is very functional for me. Instead of connecting to the computer, I bought an external hard drive and use it to read the cd's. Best $80 I ever spent. Don't let thread cost bother you either. Embroidery is different than piecing and you won't use near the thread and the large spools have 1,100 yards and that is a far cry of the 250y and 400y spools we use. Check the various threads out, too. I haven't found a one that I don't like. You can buy large spools of white and black rayon/nylon and use in your bobbin only. You will get a more economical use of your thread.
Don't forget about stabilizer. Play around and find out what works best for you. Keep a variety for the unexpected.
My 350E is an investment that I truly have enjoyed and well worth every penny spent. If you are buying from a dealer, see if they won't comp you some threads and stabilizer.