I was away from crypto for years and now I'm trying to get back into the game. I was really STUNNED that there is no exchange, even after many years since bitcoin started, that we can just deposit USD and start exchanging altcoins. I hope I'm wrong because this would be the single biggest hurdle for altcoins to be widely adopted by general public. There are just too many hurdles to jump over just to START trading.
Oh come on meanbean, grow up, it's not that hard. The "hurdles" you need to jump over seem to be hurdles to you because you are too lazy to figure out how to get bitcoin.
Be a lemming and use coinbase, it's super easy.
Hell, you can even use localbitcoins, there's people that'll sell btc for cash, bank transfer, paypal, you name it.
As far as a recommendation for a good beginner exchange, I would recommend binance.
It truly shines when you trade in bnb.
Just move your btc there, switch it to bnb (make sure you pay your fees using bnb, it's 50% cheaper) and trade like a funky monkey.
Some exchanges to avoid like the plague are hitbtc (won't let you withdraw), cryptopia(crazy high fees), and poloniex(can't handle large volume).