Those Applause mandolins are inexplicably overpriced; it's kind of the McDonalds/Holiday Inn factor I guess. You know just what you're getting and it'll be the same every time, everywhere, and everyone can recognize one.I agree with Rick on the Martin mandolins; they're real nice with good sustain for Celtic kind of stuff; they are neither rare nor extremely common since the company produced the A-style in modest numbers for over 50 years. They're not a bluegrass mandolin which keeps them cheaper. I want one. Last time I checked Elderly had a 1926 A-style for about $525.
My main playing mandolin since 1989 has been a famous name indeed: a Bently. (A style with F-holes) Paid $85 US for it at the Kerrville Folk Festival. Solid (plywood, that is) like a rock and I can do stupid juggling tricks with it without fear even though I can't juggle. It's a poor man's Rolls Royce. It had that stupid floating bridge thing that is adjustable but warps; I threw that away a couple of years ago and put a stock solid bridge on top of the base (the thing with two feet that fits on the arched top); this is a modification I recommend to anyone. Improved the sound IMHO and is wonderfully stable.
In short: it's not really a brand name thing. Maybe one in ten cheap mandolins will be the equal of this one; they're durable and you can experiment on them without risking a fortune. Save 'em, trade em, buy em at garage sales.
But Laura, BY ALL MEANS GET A MANDOLIN!!! Hell, get three.
Bill