With regard to the acoustic, There is definitely a difference in sound and playability. My inexpensive Vantage sounds and plays pretty good even after 25 years, but it does not hold a candle to my Dad's Gibson, which is probably twice that age. It could be worth upgrading your acoustic afterall. As far as recording, you would only have a fairly inexpensive microphone or pick up to purchase on top of that.

With regard to acoustic/electric, I have only ever played 3 different ones and they do not sound as well unplugged as an acoustic, and when amped, I don't find they match a miced acoustic very well. They are different beasts and they sound different. You should go to a music store and see for yourself. (Having said that, my modelling pedal is doing a great job simulating a miced acoustic with my L6, so maybe I just didn't have a good set up in my experience.)

With regard to electric, some people say there are only 3 kinds of guitar: Gibson, Fender and Ibanez (not my quote! :) ). I don't think you can go too wrong with either brand. I had a couple friends that played Ibanez and and they both were real nice playing guitars.

I think you have to decide on what you really want. As I have been well advised, no single guitar can do everything, so you have to figure out what your goal is. There is a thread around here where I was trying to decide what kind of guitar to build and I think I went completely in a circle at least twice before I figured out what I actually wanted. :o

Take your time. Definitely go to a music shop, but don't buy anything. Try some different guitars and think about it a bit. Or a week. Go back again and reassess and take your time. You are choosing what may be a friend for life. :)