They could simply be highly advanced 3D holo buttons you can not only push, but squeeze, turn, shear, pull, rub,...Just to reinforce my last point (Damn you no edit button!)
The Defiant looks outright silly in 2005's In a Mirror, Darkly when compared to the controls the X01 is rocking. It's going to look even sillier nearly 20 years later. You can't just resume push buttons in an era of touch screens and gesture controls.