In regard to digital measuring devices, they are much easier to recalibrate than say a strip of metal with graduated marks. This can lengthen it's lifetime of use, as well as speed installation and manufacturing time as neither has to be as precise as the analog versions.
Another perceived benefit is that the indicator dial/display can be offset from the scale. I know I've seen some height gauges that partially cover the numbers that indicate their position. Digital solutions allow the measuring marks to be independent of how one takes the measurement.
Why would a ruler marked in binary not need to be as precise as a ruler marked in decimal? Changing the base of the numbers does little to affect how one attaches it to the wall.
After it was manufactured, it could be calibrated and the counter could then tell itself that 100cm is actually only 98cm due to manufacturing tolerance errors, for example. Then, after it was installed on the wall one centimeter too high, it could then be re-calibrated to reflect that error as well.
Abstracting the way the device counts (incremented binary marks on the wall) away from the measurement (inches or centimeters, etc) with a re-programmable digital device has many benefits.
I'm all for digitizing things, but is there any reason to replace this?