There was a time when I would have said all esp32 are the same, and the difference is in the development board they are placed on. But now they have s2, s3 and other variants. I would stick to the esp32 simpliciter, rather than a variant.
As for which dev board to buy, don’t go for cheap. They are often made with little quality control by AliExpress sellers against whom you have little comeback.
This thread has some good tips. What's your favourite ESP32 board? (# Best, good, cheap, quality, reliable)