Thanks for this post. This is indeed a helpful topic for those who would like to get into playing electric guitar. is right, first you gotta choose which style of electric guitar first, will it be a stratocaster (fender)? Or a les paul (gibson)? Next would be to choose whether to get the expensive one (fender/gibson) or the affordable one (squier/epiphone).
I myself have both the fender and the squier in possession right now, but I couldn't quite compare both as they're not apples to apples so to speak. My Fender is a '62 vintage reissue while the Squier is a Deluxe model which is somehow a modern take on the vintage strat with its 22 fretted fingerboard and modern bridge and tuners that seem to stay in tune pretty well. Now is right, both play very well, but neither of these guitars will improve my guitar playing unless I practice really hard.
My advice, work on your budget limit, try and test a lot of guitars before making the purchase. Don't let the guitar brand limit your quest in becoming a good musician. Practice a lot. Sooner or later the rewards will come and you'll eventually get your dream guitar :-) cheers!
RE: Squier V.S. Fender (And Epiphone V.S. Gibson)