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I've been riding on the street for 40+ years, mostly on supposedly "killer" liter class sport bikes, and you have to take my word for it that scooters in general are much more dangerous than motorcycles. Their small wheels fall into potholes much easier, they go fast enough to seriously injure the operator, but don't have enough power/brakes/grip to avoid accidents in the first place.
Slow and cute may seem non-threatening, but don't be deceived. Just say no to scooters.
Wow, 350-600 cc seems awful powerful for a rider who's never riden a motorcycle before. Are you sure about that?
With the exception of a handful of 500-600cc hard core sport bikes (something along the lines of an R6), most motorcycles in this displacement range are very benign and easy to ride for beginners. Even sporty looking bikes like the Ninja 500 aren't powerful enough to be considered beyond the abilities of a beginner. With around 52 hp, they're not intimidating at all and offer sufficient performance to keep up with traffic. On the other, a hyper sport 600 can put down nearly 120hp, which is still manageable by a beginner but is certainly not an uncontrollable beast. While some of these smaller bikes look similar to their 200hp fire-breathing big brothers, they are actually quite benign. Furthermore, power, in general, is not what makes a motorcycle dangerous. I feel far more vulnerable on my 10hp Grom than I do on my 200hp R1M, for example.
If you want a motorcycle, get a motorcycle, not a scooter. Because of their small wheels scooters are twitchy. Millions of people love them in Europe and Asia, but in the U.S., not so much. Start with a 250 or 300cc and become a proficient rider, then move up to whatever you want. Take a safety course if you want to. I myself learned to ride from friends who rode, and I've had a few unplanned get-offs, but I'm still riding and loving it.
In 1983 I daily drove a Kawasaki GPZ 1100. A coworker had a Kawaski GPZ 550 and one day we went out together and switched bikes. I loved the nimble handling of the 550, but other than that I felt I'm on a bicycle.
I agree with those who recommended taking a safety course; much safer and also quicker to get just enough riding skills and confidence to test ride motorcycles you will be checking out.
I also agree with BMW R1100, if you want a motorcycle, get a motorcycle not a scooter. If you are not terribly heavy set, even at 6' you should be able to manage a scooter but those two are totally different.
You know your budget. Focus on what style riding you would or want to do. Daily commute? Weekend joy rides? Short/Long distance touring?
Depending on the type of rides you will most likely to participate in, look at the pictures of motorcycles in that category. Use Cycle Trader or Craig's List to look up the pictures to see which makes and models appeal to you.
Then make a list of the ones you like. Then do some research online to see their overall reputation. I'd even visit the public forum for each of these specific models. Without signing up or registering, you should be able to glance thru the threads to get a feel from those who own and ride one. Or you could also share your list here and ask opinions.
Don't worry about the bike being powerful or big/heavy, you are not gonna carry the damn thing on your back.
Power can save your behind in a tight situation but a slow bike will not help. It is all in the twist of the wrist anyhow. You don't want a small and/or slow bike just to grow out of it in a matter of weeks/months.
Again, focus on what kind of riding you want to do. This will shorten the list of suitable bikes.
Go sign up to a local training course just to get a feel for riding. There is a tiny percentage of pupil who actually bail out after getting scared or realizing riding isn't for them.
Better to come to that conclusion before spending a lot more on a bike!
Once you are trained and got your license, go check out the local used bikes in person.
You don't have to ride them but just sit on them to get feel.
Good luck!
PS. Engine displacement to power ratio is different between cruisers vs street bikes and sports bikes. A 500cc sports bike will be lighter and quicker than a 1000cc cruiser, seemingly more powerful.
Cruisers with V-twins typically have more torque but not much top speed. 2/3 cylinder bike's power delivery may not be as linear and smooth as a V4 bike. Its age and technology could also factor in on how the bike handles the power. I'd not worry too much about these details until you get to the bike buying phase.
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