I havn't used either of those, but for 2nd question; I have a 2200 Ryobi and am happy with it. It will run my 9200 BTU air cond just fine. It is quiet and always starts on first pull. Light, small and quiet. I paid about $500 but price prob $600 now.
You really should investigate solar more for what you are doing rather than use a generator...
Def get an inverter gen as they idle down to run just fast enough for the loads you have on it which saves gas and sound.
My brother has a $99 (maybe $150 now) 2-stroke harbor freight (or similar brand) green, little gen. it wont run an AC but will do a refrigerator in a home. He uses it for power outages for days on end and loves it.
