The long-term value will be in the ability to send censorship-proof funds anywhere there's an internet connection. The Lightning Network (yet to be deployed in production) is supposedly going to reduce transaction fees and confirmation times.
>but isn't centralized wallets/exchanges like coinbase defeating the entire purpose of crypto currency
This is true. This is my biggest problem with the current ecosystem. If history is any guide, they'll eventually suffer from some sort of scandal and/or run that drives customers to a superior competitor. This only kicks the can, I realize, and is far from the original vision. But at least each centralized service learns from the costly mistakes of previous ones.
>but isn't centralized wallets/exchanges like coinbase defeating the entire purpose of crypto currency
This is true. This is my biggest problem with the current ecosystem. If history is any guide, they'll eventually suffer from some sort of scandal and/or run that drives customers to a superior competitor. This only kicks the can, I realize, and is far from the original vision. But at least each centralized service learns from the costly mistakes of previous ones.