Disassembly

Given Redragon threw in extra switches and these are removable, I wanted to take one apart to show you what is inside. The Redragon-branded Outemu Red is a linear switch adopting the Cherry MX design with a clear top, red stem, metal spring, and base housing that also houses the metal leaf contact. As the stem travels down, it touches one side of the metal leaf, which is in turn pushed towards the other side. This metal contact then triggers the actuation of the keystroke on the PCB, and off it goes to your computer to be reflected as an action.


Disassembly of the Redragon K599 is fairly simple. Eight Phillips head screws hold the plate in place, and you need to remove some keycaps to access these as seen above. At this point, the PCB/plate piece is still likely to be wedged firmly in place. Use a thin, flat object to apply upward pressure through the screw holes, and begin with the cutout in the plate by the space bar key where it is the easiest. Once one corner is out, the rest will soon follow, and you can then separate the two primary pieces enough to access the internal cable connecting the two.


Once the cable is dislodged, we can get a better look at the ABS plastic bottom panel with so much empty space that you may want to consider filling it out with noise-dampening foam. We also get a 3000 mAh battery, which is where that cable came from, and there is a foam piece over the battery for electrical isolation. The PCB is green, and the switch sockets are soldered directly to it with the rest of the components. Solder quality is alright—it won't win any awards. There is lacquer on the USB microcontroller and what looks to be a dedicated hardware LED driver, which makes identifying those difficult. As is the norm, all the components are soldered onto a multi-layer PCB.

Before we move on, be advised that disassembly may void the warranty and that TechPowerUp is not liable for any damages incurred if you decide to go ahead and do so anyway.