I have a Brother that I bought from HSN with the easy pay and yes it is limited to a 4x4 hoop but for someone to just get started with embroidery it is a very good machine. Mine also has a connector for my computer. It allowes me to download different designs without having buying extra equiptment(spelling) to download from the internet. It took me a little while to learn how to do it but was well worth it. This was my first computerized machine and I let it sit in the box for 3 months cause I was so scared that I would not be able to learn how to work it. Just read the manual then read it again. If I can learn how to run mine anybody can. There is one drawback to this machine, when you do learn it you WILL want one that has a bigger hoop but for the price and the fact that you can download from the internet without spending more money this is the machine. Mine is a Brother HE-240.