I am considering buying into the stock market independent of managed investments like 401k, IRA, and 529 accounts. This would be a relatively meager effort initially, probably to the tune of $500-$1,000 once or twice a year, or a small amount monthly.
In your experience, what is the best platform to use - particularly in terms of UI, ease of transactions, and fees - for an independent investment effort like this? I recognize some of the names (Etrade, Fidelity) when reading the lists, but I am interest in real user experience in addition to the summaries provided but the various web publications.