I have a gaming group that converted over to 4E from 3.5E.
When I first picked up the 4E PHB I thought it was a big mistake. After playing a game I loved since about 1977 I seriously felt my D&D days were over, but figured I'd at least 'try' the new edition.
After our first game session my thoughts changed to "Hmm, Not bad, but still too new to decide". I played several more game sessions and was totally into it! I even stepped out of my norm, halfling rogue, and played a dwarven cleric. Up until this point I have NEVER played a dwarf or cleric in a PnP game. I had a blast and plan to play a dwarven cleric in our games when ever I can.