If I were going to buy a 'scope, I would go for a reflector. The reason is that you can get much more aperture for the money. The difference between a reflector and a refractor in planet viewing is not that signifigant, in my opinion. At any magazine rack of any good bookstore you should be able to get the latest edition of "Astronomy" or "Sky And Telescope" magazines. Both will have many sources of all sorts of 'scopes. You might consider a Dobsonian mounted reflector, unless you plan on doing photography through the 'scope.
    Just as important as the telescope, be sure to obtain eyepieces of quality. There are many styles to choose from and no one eyepiece is "best". You should do a bit of research on that point. The company "Orion" (www.telescope.com) puts out a nice catalog with good notes about eyepieces, and they have all sorts of other products for astronomy.
    As I'm sure you know, the view through ANY telescope---even the observatory scopes---will not be large objects like you see in pictures. The clarity is the key to eyeballing the object. With photography you have the ability to enlarge the object, and this is where the printed pictures come from.