Sorry to get into this so late. But I still have a big ol' soft spot for D&D and a few other tabletops out there.
BUt yeah I think the Fourth Edition strove to make it easier so as to free players form the system. However in doing so, it gave folks a more "WoW" (World of Warcraft) feel, or so my buddies complained. I personally liked 3.5 a lot better, but I have had fun with the 4e as well. I think all in all it depends on your DM and those you play with for how that all around experience is going to go for you.