Just make sure you get enough SSD (and RAM). Neither are upgradable on the Apple Silicon machines. 16GB of RAM should be plenty, and unless you store vast amounts of photos or videos, 2TB of SSD should be enough.
The takeaway is: those inexpensive Airs often have very skimpy RAM and SSD specs.
Just now is a good example of why I appreciate all the screen space. I happened to be browsing the Dope, opening forums and then threads in their own windows. Meanwhile I got a phone call, which I answered on the computer with headphones. They’re taking medical history and giving prep instructions for a procedure Monday. So, I have my Calendar open to add notes on the entry for the procedure, and also my Patient Portal to review my list of meds (of which there are 14). But there was a question on one so I did a web search to resolve that. And I’ve got Photos open with some cellphone pix of some of the medicine bottles. Meanwhile my friend is texting details for our upcoming trip.
I mostly want to keep these things open simultaneously, not backing out of everything while talking on the phone because sometimes I have to go back to stuff I thought was done. Also, some of these windows represent things I need to finish, so they’re very short term reminders. And I don’t want to lose my place on the Dope when all the other things are finished. I know there are ways to minimize windows and navigate around to them, but my hands are very clumsy and it’s hard not to lose stuff that way.
Screen space makes everything easier!! I have a 27" iMac plus two 27" monitors on either side.
but then again, for the use-case you mention (photos) … any $49.99 2TB disk with USB3 should be more than sufficient … and is a doble-digit solution for a triple/quadruple digit dollar problem.
but yes, you point stands … its just apple charges you pharmacy prices for SSD memory, which borders on (me!) feeling dumb if you purchase it (hence I have no apple products).
An external SSD is not a terrible solution to low internal storage, but it makes the machine less portable. Maybe not an issue for the OP, though.
And, while I agree that Apple charges a premium for internal SSD, it should be pointed out that your typical no-name USB-3.1 SSD flash drive is going to be vastly slower and of somewhat questionable reliability. If the OP wants to use an external drive, at the very least they should buy it from SanDisk, Lexar, Samsung or some other known manufacturer (not Kodak!).
I don’t think this is an issue with any monitor of reasonable quality. And any concerns about about scaling mismatches and sharpness were resolved in MacOS long ago. My work machine is a MacBook Pro M4 and I have two 27" Dell 4k monitors that were not particularly expensive and they work well and are excellent image quality. For reference, I am a long time visual creative with significant experience in cross-media color reproduction, so I am far pickier than most and have a bunch of (mostly unused these day) measurement equipment to back up my perception.
You would use a normal high-quality SSD in an external enclosure. It ends up being about the size of a deck of cards and half the price of the Apple tax.
Actually, when I have done this, I have used an NvME or M.2 stick in a USB enclosure. Faster and smaller than a 2.5” SSD, but still vastly slower than internal Flash.
Okay, folks, can we slow this down so I can take notes and look stuff up??
Again, many thanks for all the ideas and examples and suggestions!
Quality doesn’t really have much to do with it. But scaling and sharpness issues actually got worse after the move to retina displays, because Apple dropped support for sub-pixel antialiasing that helps make text and such look more smooth on screens with lower resolution. Again, some people don’t notice or care, depending on eyesight, but I absolutely see when a screen isn’t quite at native resolution.
No need to overthink it 
Just go to a retailer that will let you return things if something doesn’t work out. It’ll probably be fine. Grab a Macbook Pro (or Air if you prefer), a monitor to go with it, an Apple keyboard & mouse if you want the least fuss, and then just try it out at home during the return period.
Chances are it’ll be fine. If not, return whatever you’re not satisfied with and come back for more help then… don’t worry, you’ll get pages of recommendations
Or if you don’t really need a fancy laptop, just get another iMac and a separate cheap Chromebook/iPad with keyboard. There, no compatibility issues at all.
I do have and use an iPad. The laptop is tempting because I give lectures and talks with PowerPoint fairly regularly, md always tell people they need to supply a computer as well as the projector and screen. This is sometimes problematic. I have not had great luck using the iPad in place of a computer for this.
That makes sense.