I’m doing my PPL training in a Skycatcher and really enjoy it. It’s a lot of fun to fly once you get the hang of it, the only downsides being the wind sensitivity and the weight limits. You also can’t beat the rental price compared to the 172.
I’m also planning to buy a plane after I finish my training and really cannot find a reason to talk myself out of a 162. It fits my mission of short solo VFR flights. Also I just don’t see many other options where you can get a modern plane (say less than 10 years old), under 1500 hours TT, and with a dual screen glass cocokpit for around $50k. Maybe I’m missing something here, but seems like a pretty good deal to me too.
Good luck in whatever you decide. Would love to hear some feedback once you get started.