I am a dyed-in-the-wool Bernina girl. The first one I bought - 20 years ago - still sews as beautifully as it did the day I brought it home. My "travel" Bernina, a 240 (since discontinued and replaced with a 300-series machine) is a little lighter than my 153QE, but still over 20 lbs. It also sews beautifully.
In between buying my 1st and 2nd Bernina, I tried 2 different Janomes for traveling with. I go to a retreat (sometimes 2) each year, as well as several sewing days with the guild I belong to and the occasional class. Berninas are still all metal, with the exception of the housing, so they are heavy and I was looking for something lighter. The Janomes just didn't do a thing for me.
All of that said, Berninas are pricey. Until you know that quilting or sewing is something you want to do, I'm not sure I could say they are beginner machines unless you have quite a bit of discretionary money that you don't mind spending on something that you may or may not use. A Bernina, should you decide you don't want to keep it, will hold a good resale value if you want to deal with selling it, but still, that's a pain in the neck.
Do you have dealers in your area, or within an easy drive, regardless of brand? What do they offer in the way of support with a purchase? You should have an opportunity for classes to get familiar with your machine. What kinds of reviews do they have for their service? What to they offer as far as trade in if you decide to trade UP?
What are your needs, and what are your wants? Some folks love the knee lift on the Berninas - I've never gotten used to it and don't use it. Do you anticipate sewing through multiple layers (lots of seams coming together, batting or stabilizers), or very basic piecing? Do you like the look/feel of embroidery?
The only things that I wish my machines had that they don't have are BSR for free-motion quilting and an automatic thread cutter. Both are just wants, not needs by any means, so I'm not upgrading to a higher level machine that would have them.
Don't rule out a good used machine from a dealer - they get them from people who are trading up and many offer excellent value. There are scads of threads here on machines, and you'll get lots of different opinions on every brand out there. Another source for machine info is
www.sewingpatternreview.com; some info there is open to all, some requires joining their site (which is free).
Budget, dealers (for sales, support and service), and features are the things I'd look for if I were starting out again. Take some fabric with you and sit and sew on each machine you are considering. The only thing I would tell a beginner to NOT consider is a machine that comes in a box that you are not able to try.
Good luck - a sewing machine that you find intuitive can make a huge difference in whether or not you enjoy any type of sewing, be it quilting, garment construction, decor, etc. If you are forever struggling with the operation, jamming, stitch quality, etc., it will end up being an expensive dust collector.