[markem]

Depends on the apps you want to run. The iPad is great with the kindle app (convert books using the calibre program which also manages your libraries). The new MS tablet that MS hopes will be an iPad killer was just announced and will run Windows 8, but not sure if it has full runtimes and such to be able to run arbitrary apps.

If browsing the internet is not a huge priority, the Amazon Kindle Fire might work, but you can't run your own apps. The price you pay for a good e-reader is a locked down system, at least for now.

If reading e-books, newspapers, magazines, etc. is the main thing for the next 2 years or so, I'd go with the Kindle 3G. Free wireless through AT&T and easy to manage subscriptions at Amazon. I actually turn the wireless off for about 1.5 weeks of heavy reading. I plug the device in to my PC where I run calibre to manage the device. I've heard good things about the Kindle Fire, but I've also heard that you may as well get an iPad on the refurbished market for what they cost and do.