Performance

The Redragon K585 Diti keyboard supports N-key rollover USB which tested successfully using Aqua's test. Switch Hitter confirmed no chatter with these keys either, and the screenshot above also shows the functions with dedicated keys on the base layer of this gamepad keyboard, which reveals that some of the G-keys are tied to a few other keys of.. interesting choice (P? Really?).

When first powered on, the keyboard lights up in a rainbow wave effect that moves from left to right. Given the shorter keyboard here, transition time is on the faster side of average on the default settings. Otherwise, this works well enough to indicate a working keyboard recognized by your PC, as well as giving you a first look at the RGB lighting on offer.


There are barely any lighting effects to choose from with the software drivers, and nothing to do with the onboard controls for lighting. As such, testing is limited, but I was able to check for light bleed (minimal given the two-piece case and lack of floating keycaps) and color fidelity. The latter test needs to be taken with a grain of salt since there is no static lighting effect to choose, so the photo above is of the keyboard in breathing mode with the color set to white. As such, I am not considering the different brightness levels to be an issue here; however, the strong pink hue definitely is an indicator of poor color fidelity.

Here are some more of the lighting effects demonstrated, which now means you have seen all three dynamic effects out of the total of five available here, with the other two being reactive effects when typing. Let's just say that backlighting is not really a strength of the Redragon K585 Diti.

So obviously, you would not want to use this as a replacement keyboard unless you remap the keys to other functions on another profile, but good luck doing that with the software if your experience is similar to mine. The only reason to get this keyboard is to use it as a gamepad for one-handed use, customized around certain applications. I do appreciate the physical layout, it is well thought out, and the dedicated buttons add to the experience. There are buttons specifically to change the profile, as well as seven macro buttons (G-keys, T, and tilde) which are all larger in size than the others. I am not convinced about some of the pre-programmed functions for the extra keys, but it is not a deal breaker. For games where you have the left hand on the QWERTY/WASD keys more often than not, this gamepad better utilizes the physical space on your desk, and it puts the mouse closer for ergonomics. The USB port on the keyboard helps with this as well, and the integrated hub is fine in that regard.


As we saw before, Redragon uses the Outemu Blue (from Gaote Corporation) mechanical switches with the K585 Diti, although there is an Outemu Brown option as well. The force-travel diagram above shows that these blue switches are meant to be as close to a Cherry MX Clone as any other. Both are medium-actuation force tactile and clicky switches and have similar designs throughout—note that the updated version of the switch with the walls around the stem is functionally the same as far as this section is concerned. The Outemu Blue is rated at a 50 +/-5 gf actuation point with a peak force of 60 gf and a standard 2/4 mm for tactile feedback and total travel distance. Actuation ends up closer to 2.5 mm, and actuation force is harder to quantify because the tactile event occurs before actuation. For what it is worth, the average actuation force was estimated to be 49.55 cN across twenty random switches, and bottoming out felt just fine as well since nothing in particular stood out.


As always, the sound of a keyboard is based on more than just the switch type. So when comparing sound clips, consider the keyboard as a whole. In this case, I have provided above an example sound clip of me randomly typing on the Redragon K585 keyboard sample as it comes out of the box with the Outemu Blue switches, but there wasn't much logical typing to be done here. For context, you can find sound clips from other keyboards here, including those with clicky switches. I did bottom out more often than not, but if you want to train yourself to touch-type, the tactile bump in these trump linear switches.