ONe thing we learned during our 12 years cruising is that everything breaks and simplicity rules. That being said we really liked our creature comforts. Microwave oven , hot water, Ice Cream, 25 knots in the dingy, etc. We always had some simple piece of equipment on board to backup anything more complex. All our systems were duplicated with a complex primary and a backup/simple redundant one. I guess it's our way of thinking about being self-sufficient and redundant. Everybody's different, that's what we felt comfortable with.

You don't want a compass don't get one. I wouldn't sail without a good visible mechanical compass at the helm.