I love bettas. I have one myself, Zikel, and he's a beauty. He makes for a good companion, in my opinion. I haven't owned many other kinds, but bettas are my favorite to keep.
I've seen fancy-tailed guppies. They look kind of like mini-bettas and aren't hard to care for. They come in really pretty colors, too, but betta shades are my favorite.
The red ones with the turquoise streaks are particularly awesome, though mine is blue with red and purple on his fins. He just sucked me in the second I saw him at the store and I had to take him home <3 I've seen some interesting ones with bright, purple fins and beige bodies, too. Shop around at the stores in your town and see what they have.
Don't buy from WalMart though... I just complained today to their managers about the state of their bettas. Most of them had dirty water, and one was even dead and rotting in his cup. I nearly cried right there in the store.
Anyways, I prefer bettas the most, but keep looking around and see what you can find.
