If you are interested in starting out in digital photography my advice would be to buy a cheap secondhand DSLR and a good quality lens. DSLR's lose value pretty rapidly while lenses keep their value and usefulness for years and years. You can get a secondhand entry level DSLR made by a big brand name from about two to three years ago for very little.

While the type of camera used is pretty irrelevant when you see photos beside each other on a wall, I think having a camera with a bit weight and which is comfortable to hold with a nice big, bright viewfinder does make a difference, particularly when light gets low. Holding a lightweight camera away from your face so you can see the screen on the back is a recipe for blurry, grungy photos except in ideal daylight.

When all the functions are buried in menus you also won't get as much opportunity to take creative advantage of them, when they are just a button push away on the camera body you learn to use them to your advantage much quicker.