I was able to snag a
Weber Performer Deluxe off of craigslist for $100.
While I do miss the convivence of my old Weber Genesis nat gas grill, with the propane burner, I don't notice much difference in preheating time.
I haven't had that much experience in dealing with charcoal and have been dabbling with Kingsford briquettes and have recently started using lump charcoal. I couldn't believe the heat difference between the two. It was tough to get above 400F with briquettes and I had to use way more of them. The lump charcoal blows past 500F. One of the benefits I am seeing in lump vs briquettes is I am getting multiple cooks out of a load of charcoal now. I bought a couple charcoal baskets which makes it easier to light the charcoal and move it around the kettle. Once I'm done my cook, I close the top and bottom vents and it extinguishes the fire and it's ready for the next cook. I'm not finding that briquettes refire as well as the lump charcoal.