Absolute Beginner in Crypto: Looking to weigh my storage options

Hey everyone,

I know there's probably questions and posts like this everyday, but after going back and forth on it, I'm looking to take the plunge into crypto, expand my portfolio and buy some Ethereum for starters. I have looked in multiple subreddits and online, but would really love the opinions of people who have been in the space for a while and long term holders. I plan on essentially doing crytpo how I handle my other assets and slowly buy more and more every month as time goes on.

I've tried to way my options about how to store it, looking into cold wallets like the Ledger Nano X and S, but don't know if I should buy a cold wallet to start. I'm going to *hopefully* end up buying a fair amount in a year's time, so should I bite the bullet now and buy a cold wallet? or go off an online wallet or trading way until I accumulate a fair amount?

I am very interested in the space and think perhaps having a cold storage wallet would better help me understand the technology and potentially other coins on top of Ethereum? Really any advice or expertise in the area would be much appreciated, thank you!