Depends on the features each one has
I would say that modern light meters would definitely have more useful features than a vintage one.
You can use any handheld light meter with any camera, be it SLR, compact, or DSLR, it makes no difference, since the light meter works independently of the camera. Although you can connect it to measure on board flash, if it has that facility. There are different types of light meter, some measure just ambient light, others measure ambient + flash. A spot meter is best, but these are more expensive.