Ask HN: Night Friendly CLI Displays?

Wasn’t too sure how to phrase this one.

I have an old car (2003) and when I’m driving at night I’m always struck by how comforting and soft the light from the dashboard is (odometer, speedometer, revs, etc). Here’s an image for reference: https://ibb.co/wYXMxkY

Then I drive a more recent car - and the light, even on the dimmest setting has a more jarring quality.

How are these made? Are they just backlit panels with cutouts? I’d love to build a cli display using this kind of lighting.