Thinking of a new gadget...

[Csory_imp]

Perhaps I should've better explained design constraints and considerations...

(a) form factor: wanted something as unobtrusive and nondistracting as possible. Creating something that is as small as it can be (within my design and building skills, yet remaining legible) was definitely a goal. The only place on the CB1100's instrument cluster available (at least to my eyes) was right above the small Honda logo. This defines the gadget's exterior dimensions.

(b) reliability and sunlight-visibility: optimal solution would be a trans-reflective LCD, with back lighting. This is the same display type Honda uses. However, I was unable to get hold of any right-sized such displays, and don't have the financial resources to have one manufactured... I have a candidate in my project box, but it is much wider (1.5x or so) than the current display. Second best was the LED display - good visibility, quite rugged, and available in different colors and sizes. Went with this one.

( c) ease of use: 7-segment displays don't require the computing and memory capacity graphical displays do. Maybe I could squeeze in a larger microcontroller and have a graphical OLED display, but that would be a can of worms. OLEDs, so popular these days, are prone to burn-in and fading over time, not really UV proof, and have lower surface brightness than LEDs. Also, just could not find anything with the right size

(d) limitations of the selected display module: the 7-segment display I went with is really just what the name says. It can show 3 numbers, with decimal points between them, and nothing more. (Actually, 7 tiny glowing bars and a dot per number). You can imagine how easy it is to make "graphics" with this - or just a proper "w" letter...

Conclusion: I'll finalize the gadget using this type of display and see if it works okay. If I'll ever have the feeling that a graphical display would significantly improve user experience, will go and make another prototype...