While electronic compasses are interesting, they are not nearly as accurate as a moderately good magnetic compass, and since they rely on batteries and electronics, there is a certain risk of malfunctions that aren't present with magnetic compasses.

If you want a gadget, get a GPS - Garmin Etrex GPS's are very nice. GPS's are wonderful navigational tools that should be used along with good maps and compasses.

For most users I recommend they stick with compasses with clear rectangular baseplates (like the Suunto M-3) or a baseplate with a sighting mirror (like the Brunton 15TDCL/Silva Ranger). Lensatic compasses are great for taking bearings, but they are not usually recommended for beginners. For brands I strongly recommend that you stick to Brunton, Silva, or Suunto. Understand that Silva of Sweden owns Brunton, but ironically in the U.S. Silva of Sweden does not own the trademark "Silva", so compasses sold in the U.S. with the trademark Silva are actually made by someone else - maybe Suunto - and then distributed by Johnson Outdoors. They are decent compasses too.

I have far too many compasses:

Brunton/Silva:
>8099 Eclipse - $79
>15TDCL (the real Ranger compass made by Silva SE) - $62
>8096 Eclipse GPS - $39
>8010G (larger compass in Optic green from Brunton) - $19
>9020G (small compass in Optic green from Brunton) - $13
>7DNL (the basic 1-2-3 Starter compass from Silva SE) - $12
>9068 (clip-on watch compass from Brunton) - $4

Suunto:
>M-3 w/ standard needle $20
>M-3 w/ global needle - $32

My tendency is to prefer basic compasses that are low cost and high quality. Adjustable declination is absolutely a necessity to me.

My preferences are:
>Suunto M-3 Standard Needle - $20 - Great price; high quality
>Suunto M-3 Global Needle - $32 - The needle contrast isn't as good
>Brunton 8010G - $19 - Great compass, not quite as high quality as the M-3
>8096 Eclipse GPS - $39 - Would have been ahead of others, but big and a bit heavy. Accurate to 1 degree. I suspect the >Brunton 8097 Eclipse $39 would be ahead of the others, but I don't own one.
>Brunton 8099 Eclipse - $79 - Fantastic compass, LOTS of features, may be too complicated for some, better sighting mirror than the 15TDCL, kind of heavy and big and pricey
>Brunton/Silva 15TDCL - $62 - classic, big mirror, nice compass.
>Brunton 9020G - $13 - decent compass, but the symmetric shape front-to-back runs the risk of accidently pointing the wrong end forward.

These compasses are not acceptable to me because they don't have adjustable declination:
>7DNL - $12
>9068 - $4

Overall, my advice would be to go with the Brunton 8097 Eclipse or the Suunto M-3 standard needle.

Then, buy a book called "GPS Land Navigation" by Michael Ferguson. It does a great job of explaining how to use a GPS, a map, and a compass, how to use a compass with a map, and then use all three of them together to get the most benefit. None of them will do you any good unless you know how to use them correctly and efficiently.