They are a bit different. The Clarendon area has a higher concentration of the bars, restaurants and shops than the others (including Trader Joe's and Whole Foods). The metro map is quite deceiving. In looking at the orange line, Ballston - Virginia Sq - Clarendon - Courthouse - Rosslyn are each about 1/2 mile from each other. In comparison, East Falls Church - Ballston is 2 miles. I think there are two brand new apartment complexes in Courthouse though (by Tupelo Honey Cafe).

When we first lived there, we lived in Crystal City at Camden Potomac Yard. Very convenient to grocery (Harris Teeter next door), DCA, and the Metro (they now have MetroWay bus service which helps getting to the subway), but since it is on the Blue/Yellow Line it wouldn't be as convenient. The nice part is it's "high" at 12 floors and overlooks the airport so you get some great shots of planes. We then moved to Bell Del Ray after that, Del Ray is awesome to live in but again not convenient for you since it's on Blue/Yellow. Definitely visit Del Ray though, it's like an old Southern main street, full of shops and restaurants and seems to be a bit of a hidden gem.