I don't have any geckos, so I can't give advise on them, I'll just tell you what I think about beardies.
I would recommend this lizard to anyone who is a beginner and wants a tame, friendly, moderate-sized lizard. They stay between 1.5 - 2 feet long, so they aren't so small you are afraid of breaking them, but they don't get enourmous like igauanas where you have to give up half of your bedroom for an enclosure. They do need space though, so definately plan on having a decent sized enclosure (4x2x2) by the time they are full grown. They are certainly friendly, mine are handled every week or so by a 3 and 7 year old, the kids love them! They are not always as friendly to their own kind, though, so please don't put two of them together unless you want to risk fighting or babies. They do take work, education, and responsibility, like any pet should.... but as far are lizards go they are fairly simple to care for.
As for meat, I'm not sure what you mean, but whether you get a gecko or a dragon you are going to have to get used to caring for and handling insects on a regular basis. Adults dragons can eat far less insects than if you start out with a baby that can pack down 50-100 small crickets a day. You can feed an adult salads every day and insects only a few times a week if you go that route. You can get a beardie that is raised cricket-free but I would still advise giving them hand-raised roaches, silkworms, or superworms on occasion, it is a valuable protien source for them that can't and shouldn't be substituted by ground beef or chopped up chicken. Mealworms are fine for an occasional treat, but aren't a great staple insect because of the hard outer shells and little nutritional value.
The best advice I think I can give you, no matter what you go with, is not to take any one person's advice as gospel. Do a lot of research on whatever animal you choose before spending your money on it. There are a lot of varied opinions and misinformation out there, and no one to regulate it. The more different sources you learn from, the more you will be able to make smart decisions on what is best. I can't stress enough the importance of thoughtful research before buying an exotic animal. Too many people will go to the pet store with no knowledge about the reptile they want, and assume the employee knows what's best, and this is bad. If a pet store tries to sell you heat lamps made especially for reptiles, or calcium sand because it's digestable and safe.... run as fast as you can. Lots of products marketed for reptiles are uneccesary, overpriced, and dangerous. A plain floodlight from wal-mart matched with a UVB light is more practical, and paper towels for bedding MUCH safer. Sometimes the simplest answer is the best answer.
I hope this helps you some. Here is a link that I believe is a good start to learning about beardie husbandry. Good luck!
http://www.beautifuldragons.com/
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2.0 bearded dragons (Ocho / Domo-kun)
0.1 kingsnake (Rio)
1.0 ferret (Playstation)
1.0 cat (Wally)
0.1 dog (Tima)
