I prefer the corded. My yard isn't big enough to need gas, and gas trimmers can be a pain to get started after the first year.

Getting one that will last is hard. I haven't had any better luck with expensive ones, so I go with cheap and expect them to wear out in a couple or three years. Usually the feed stops working, I've had a motor burn out once.

You can get the kind that extend line when you bump them on the ground, and those that extend line automatically when you stop the cut. I've had better luck with the bump, but I think the trend is to the automatic type.

When the feed wears out, you can get another year out of them by cutting pieces of heavier line, and manually inserting.

I use a corded hedge trimmer too. It has more power than the battery ones, less power than the gas ones. You need a longer extension cord than you think though, because each year it will shorten by 2 or 3 feet, sometimes more.