It depends on what your indended use is (carry,range or home defence). In my opinion (and can only speak for what I own) for the 3 possibilitys I will give my favorites

1:carry- springfeild xd or xdm in either 9mm or .40.

2:range use either a 1911 or my favorite of all the Beretta m9 (92fs) either one is extremely accurate and fun to shoot.

3: home defence- for home defence I like something with a higher capacity magazine so I often pick the m9 or the xd for night stand use. I have a tac light/laser mounted on the xd so that's my primary.

$300 to $400 for a new gun is going to limit you somewhat. And, this is a terrible time to be gun shopping, with all the recent drama going on.

I'm NOT a fan of Taurus or Ruger, when it comes to quality handguns. That's just my personal preference. Caliber will depend upon what you feel is adequate and comfortable with. 9mm's are plentiful and always will be. BTW....no such thing as knock-down power.....unless you're talking .50 BMG. It's all about bullet placement.

If you can, save up some more $$'s and give all this a few more weeks, or a month or so, and hopefully the hysteria will die down for a while. The more $$'s you have to spend, the more you will be able to buy what you're looking for.

You are going to need more money if you want a good pistol that is brand new! I would go with the XDM 3.8 9mm as it can be concealed with 13rds or carry with 19rds. With the best bullets in 9mm you can expect a 91% manstopper from 1 round but I always been told to double tap by LEO's.

Ruger SR9....SR40....for your price range...........would look at these before SD9 or 40VE

Buy something that has been gently used. That way, you get the biggest, um, bang for your buck.
Make a deal with the gunshop (in writing) to permit you to return the used gun for credit on another purchase, if it proves unsatisfactory.
Then take the used gun to a good gunsmith for survey, and advice on acceptance or rejection.

We own lots of guns, all of them accurate and reliable, but only two of them were purchased new.