Amiiqo (Hardware)
Official GBAtemp Review
Product Information:
Review Approach:
Like my review of the MaxLander several weeks ago this review was done in a video format. Once again it's a three for one video (unboxing, tutorial, and review) that will go over everything that you need to know about the Amiiqo. I hope that you enjoy it!
Written Review
The written review that follows is taken verbatim from the video review, so if you truly want to know every detail about the Amiiqo I suggest watching that for more detailed information. The written review is meant as a text reference to the review in the video that starts around the 6:59 mark:
Let me start off by saying that the Amiiqo is a godsend for people like me who want it all, without having to actually carry it all. I use my 3DS all the time, but having to carry around Amiibo is a chore that the Amiiqo solves. It’s extremely simple to use and I can’t imagine it being any more straightforward. All of the instructions are in plain English and easy to understand.
What is the biggest issue for people who like to collect toys, but want to keep them in mint condition? They’re not allowed to play with them! With Skylanders, you’re allowed to use them while they are still in the box, but that is not the case with Amiibos which force you to open them in order to get them to play on your console. The Amiiqo solves that problem! Now you can keep your collection in mint condition while still enjoying everything that they have to offer.
In addition, for those who are completely clumsy with their toys, you can use the Amiiqo to constantly back them up in case you break it. Now you don’t have to lose your progress just because you accidently ran your rare Roselina Amiibo over with your car!
And then there are those who just want to play games with Amiibo functionality without spending the time searching for rare figures to be bought by scalpers. The Amiiqo works for those people as well. If I had to think of a downside to the Amiiqo, it’s that the easiest way to use it involves having an android phone that doubles as an NFC scanner. My main phone doesn’t allow that, so I was lucky that my backup phone did. However, the Amiiqo team now sells a device that allows you to use your Amiiqo on your PC through USB, so it’s accessible to everybody.
People were initially up in arms about the price of the Amiiqo. “$80-90 is insane!” we said in unison. Personally I was not attracted to that price either and was waiting desperately for competition to show up to force them to lower their price. However, even though it is still the only tool that works with Amiibo, they recently cut the price nearly in half! The Amiiqo is being sold for only $55 today, which makes it even cheaper than the MaxLander which is the Amiiqos equivalent for Skylanders. For those who bought the Amiiqo at the higher price point, be sure to contact the Amiiqo team because last I checked they were offering to ship either a second Amiiqo unit or the new USB tool to their early adopters.
I have one last thing to say about the Amiiqo team and that is that they are extremely nice and provide great customer service. The first time they shipped the Amiiqo to me it got lost by DHL, nowhere to be found. After talking with the Amiiqo team through email they immediately shipped out a second unit, apologizing for DHL. They also assured me that shipping issues are not common with them and that my situation was unique. I am only mentioning it because I wanted to elaborate on how helpful and accommodating their team is. The unit that wasn’t lost arrived after only two days. The thing ships all the way from Hong Kong and it only took two days to get to me in the middle of the United States! That’s pretty impressive to me, so kudos for that.
All in all, I am extremely satisfied with this product and I recommend it to any and all Amiibo lovers.
Amiiqo official site: http://www.amiiqo.com/
Verdict
- Full support for all Amiibo toys and cards
- Cost effective in the long run
- Relatively fast and safe shipping
- Super easy to use
- Great customer service
- Lack of support for Skylanders or Infinity
- Lack of a physical manual
