I have a kindle 3rd gen, it works perfectly great, these models are better than the "new" versions, as they also allow for listening to audio books, and audio, and have an experimental web browser, and some basic games if I recall correctly.
They are also great for staying "untethered" form amazon, as they allow you to drag and drop the books into it, to be used without being forced to sync with amazon.
I also have some 2nd generation units available, white color, if interested ask.