I'm just trying to decide what to buy for my first "proper" flashlight.
Knowing what I know now, there's no question about what I'd get for my first light, if I had to go back. I'd definitively get a Zebralight. An 18650 fueled one.
They're compact enough to EDC, good quality lights, and cover a very wide output range. You can light up a room, or you can dim them enough to check on a baby. And you can easily access the mode you want directly.
There's also enough variety to match your preferences. Frosted or not, temperature and so on.
Personally I'd got for the SC600Fc Mk IV Plus as my first, but better yet, check out the different models and think about what might fit your preferences.
There's a lot of good lights out there, but for a first, I'd want something that's easy to care and a good "go to light" covering a wide range of use cases. The zebras fit this very well.
Some of us like these lights so much, that we have or are nearing buying double digits of them.
For 18650 batteries, it might seem scary at first, but it's not a problem to use them safely if you take a couple of precautions. In a single-cell light, you've already rules out a lot of what could go wrong before you even get started. From there, get good quality cells from reputable dealers, and same for chargers. Last step is to be sure not to short them. A silicone battery "condom" will give you the protection you need.
Note that the Zebralights and some other lights use "unprotected" batteries. This doesn't actually pose as much of a danger as it might sound like. It's actually rather simple: your protection is as good or better, it's just that the protection circuitry is in the light, not in the battery. Protected batteries matter
mostly in lights using multiple cells.
A significant advantage of unprotected cells is lower parasitic drain - the battery won't empty itself on a shelf. A zebralight can sit on a shelf for a year and still have good power, and even be on for a month at a low setting.
Sorry, I'm digressing here.
What I'd do is check out the lineup for zebralight, and read up on what the differences are between the models. Even if you end up with another light, it'll raise good questions like which temperature you want, if you care about CRI and so on.
What's right for one person isn't what is right for everyone.
