firstly, your question belongs in the newbies tab.
secondly, don't be cheap.
pay for quality lessons, your instructor will tell you which gear to buy after your lessons.
then buy that gear from a local retailer, you'll get great after sales service, which is a real lifesaver when you're a newb

ah

Mate you'll get a mixed bag of replies to your question here. Chances are you'll end up more confused than when you started. Some will make some sense but some will be just plain weird, as already seen on this thread. Tell us where you live and we can recommend a good shop for you to go talk to. Any shop will have new and second hand gear, and you will get good advice and service. End thread.

What Just2807 and marno say is pretty spot on. Most kites are made in the same factory in China and they are pretty much all made with the same material and quality.There is a online company called Switch kites that are in my opinion are unbeatable for high quality, affordabley priced kites. For you the choice would be Switch Element 4 with control bar... 9 or 11m depending on your weight and local conditions - they have online chat and can guide you. $1151 for a brand new 9m element4 with rand new bar is really hard to beat. They have twin tip boards as well but you might be better finding a second hand one in the buy and sell - there are tons out there. If you allowed $400 you should be able to get a really good board only couple of seasons old

Getting solid unbiased opinions is hard to find because mostly instructors will be connected to retail shops, retail shops have their product range agenda and everyone including instructors, shops, locals at the beach, forum posters and me have their own preferences, logic and ideas. Even if you found two experienced kiters with no agenda their opinions and advice would likely be different

snalberski said..
What Just2807 and marno say is pretty spot on. Most kites are made in the same factory in China and they are pretty much all made with the same material and quality.There is a online company called Switch kites that are in my opinion are unbeatable for high quality, affordabley priced kites. For you the choice would be Switch Element 4 with control bar... 9 or 11m depending on your weight and local conditions - they have online chat and can guide you. $1151 for a brand new 9m element4 with rand new bar is really hard to beat. They have twin tip boards as well but you might be better finding a second hand one in the buy and sell - there are tons out there. If you allowed $400 you should be able to get a really good board only couple of seasons old

Getting solid unbiased opinions is hard to find because mostly instructors will be connected to retail shops, retail shops have their product range agenda and everyone including instructors, shops, locals at the beach, forum posters and me have their own preferences, logic and ideas. Even if you found two experienced kiters with no agenda their opinions and advice would likely be different

You can buy a superseded model from a shop brand new for the same price. You have to add GST on top of any of Switch's prices as they are imports and a kite is over a grand. That kite is then $1265. What's it worth to you to be able to run across the street dripping wet in your wetsuit to have the shop help you out with a spare part for your kite, or some screws for a loose footstrap? You have no idea how many times I've fixed our customers kit mid session or gotten their stuff fixed up mid week in time for their weekend session. That's because the shop is open 7 days a week and holds stock of any spare part you could need for the kites we carry. Try getting Switch to get you spare parts and install them in time for your weekend off. Go ahead and try to make shops sound like the bad guy but at the end of the day we offer competitive prices and unparalleled service.

Definitely buy used. between Google and forums you can work out kite and board size.

A lot of kites on gumtree are sold as beginner kites. obviously google the brand and model but it's a good place to start.

My first board was $100 and I still use it. My first kite was $350. Perfect But within 2 seasons I'd hammered it to death. At that point I decided I liked the sport enough to invest in a couple of new kites.