I have been thinking about purchasing one and wondered what others thought about them? 

No, but I was just reading about the new Kindle Fire. It's being released on November 15th for $199. I never buy anything right away, I like to research and read user/owner reviews first, but it's one that I'm keeping my eye on. I have a really nice tablet already, but I'm still interested in seeing how the Fire does overall. 

I love my Kindle. I have the normal one, $139 with ads. The ads don't interrupt your experience and I like them, cuz they tell you about specials on Amazon....or, ugh, when Breaking Dawn is coming out, lol! My friend gave me a cd with 1600+ ebooks on it, so I have quite the library now. I'm reading "Pillars of the Earth" now. Plus, you can go on FB, there are word games and other "free" games you can download on Amazon, and it's like this thing has endless memory! I'd go for it. 

Oh yeah, it has wifi and 3G too. 

Plus, it holds your page if you want to start another book, or break for a game. And, it has a feature where it can read to you, and if there is a word you are unsure about the meaning, you just move the cursor to the front of the word, and it will define it for you! LOVE my Kindle! 

I dont have a Kindle but I have 2 different Sony Ereaders & love them. One my son uses, and one is mine. I have the pocket PRS300 & he has the touch screen PRS600. I like mine better even though its basic b/c its small & the screen doesnt glare like his does. I have had them about 2 yrs & totally love them!! 

Darlene, have you considered buying a tablet instead of a reader? 

Aren't tablets expensive though? I know for the Kindle they now have the touch ones, which coincidentally came out AFTER I had purchased mine, but whatevs, I love my keyboard, I love everything about it. I seriously think books, themselves, are going to become obsolete with the ereaders. DVDs as well, with streaming, you can just download it to a hard drive for your TV and BOOM. I see the future, and it is....out there.....yeah....back to coffee. 

my whole issue with these is that they seem like a waste of money. most places have free wifi and laptops can download anything. they sell laptop cases and lastly i dont think ive ever even spent over 100 on books in my entire life. ill stick to reading hustler on the crapper. 

Aren't tablets expensive though?

I believe it depends on the tablet. IPads are expensive, in my opinion. Mine is an Android-based tablet and it wasn't as expensive as an IPad, but it also wasn't as cheap as a Kindle. (It was approx. $500)

Although I do have books on my tablet, nothing can replace a regular old-fashioned book. I absolutely love to read and I have numerous bookshelves in my house that are lined with books and I'm always buying more. I only use my tablet for reading when I'm on a long drive or somewhere other than home, simply because it's a convenient all-in-one source of entertainment (reading, surfing the web, checking email, games, videos/pictures, etc.). 

my whole issue with these is that they seem like a waste of money. most places have free wifi and laptops can download anything. they sell laptop cases and lastly i dont think ive ever even spent over 100 on books in my entire life. ill stick to reading hustler on the crapper.

If you have a 3G tablet, you don't need to worry about being in a free WiFi zone. There are cases (and other accessories) for tablets, too.

I could spend an entire day in a bookstore and still not want to leave. When I buy books, I can't buy just one or two because I finish them so quickly, so I normally end up buying at least a small stack. My favorite bookstore is Barnes & Noble & if you get a membership number, you can save on every purchase.