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I'm looking for info on what Warhammer 30k is, not the fluff but what the main differences are between 30k and 40k. I don't want to spend $130 on a book just yet. I know that the armies are more infantry based

If you play Horus heresy, try to sell it to me. Pretend I'm the new guy at your store.

If you're negative please don't post but if you have a legit gripe spell it out.

I keep hearing the superiority of 30k and it's balance. Love to hear how that works.

Well... as it's only Space Marines, there are by definition less imbalances and the armies are more symmetrical.

To be fair, I don't think it is any more balanced than 40K would be, if you'd took all the Xenos, Daemons, etc... out.

It's 40k rules, with different armies and wargear. It is not some mystical other game. It's way more accurate to see it as a separate codex or supplement.

The armies in 30k are also balanced towards high point play.

You need to field guard like numbers for marine like prices. There are no MSUs in the 31st millenium apparently.

The basic bolter marines which you must take have a minimum squad size of ten.

Want special weapons? Take the special weapons squad where you have 5 marines who all have that weapon, no mixing and matching.

Devastators? All of them have heavy weapons, no cheap ablative bolter wounds.

Tanks? Most can be squadronned and have a lot of add-ons that can run for a pretty penny.

30k marine armies also have a special weapon that modern 40k marines don't (volkite), and one that works completely differently (gravity weapons).

Compared to 40k C:SMs, a Legion List plays surprisingly like Eldar aspect lists in that every unit is very specialized. A 40k Marine list will probably smash a legion list at low points values because at low points the Legion list is liable to have gaping holes in it's arsenal. At higher points, the Legion list can field more bodies and some rather out there units, but if some lynchpin units go down the entire list falters.

In 30k, so far the only armies are the Legion marines and a small Adeptus Mechanicus army list that's really more suited to function as an allied detatchment than as a primary army due to it's low unit variety. So the game is in a way more "balanced".

Otherwise though, the rules are more or less all compatible with the only big difference being that 30k armies can only sink 25% of their points into a lord of war slot while there's technically nothing illegal about dropping a BEHNBLADE in a 1000 point game in 40k.