own blogs

As far as i know, blog is part of a website, more like wap site. If you want own a website then you have to buy it also you need a webhost and tools that not free. To manage and build your blog. You don't need a webhosting, just use theme and tool there for free.

Depends on what you wanna do with it and how much time you re willing to invest in it. There are some free domains out there but you would need to have some skills in order to use those. If you re new to the thing stick to blogging. Sites, especially .com ones look more "pro" but i got a feeling it s not the case for you :)