The sewing machine has moved on, no doubt about it. Every decade a few features has been added. We can have fully adjustable width on stretchy stitches, 9 m.m. zigzag, lots of buttonholes selected on a touch screen, idiot proof free motion,... Most features existed already in the 1950s, but not that many were incorporated into one machine as today. It's just that when you can go from a good computerized machine to a Singer 201 and be very happy with what it does, they aren't a bad choise at all. It might vary a bit, but to get a decent machine these days you have to be in the $500 range and up. There should definitely be room for the old machines.

I love my old Rocketeer.