Amiiqo Will Help You Cheat Amiibo Device Characters

The Amiiqo, which isn’t authorized by Nintendo, stores information on amiibo characters and can be used in place of the figures. It would function as a back-up. Currently you have to erase the saved data from your amiibo to use it in different games. A device like the Amiiqo would mean that instead of erasing the data, you could load a different version of that amiibo.

However, the site also claims that you can use the Amiiqo to store amiibo data downloaded from the Internet. Which is to say, it could be used to hold pirated information for over 200 characters.

“The  image can be from a ‘blank’ (new, unplayed) figurine but also from a Amiibo that  was  already levelled up or with power-ups, making it a super effective cheat system,” reads the Amiiqo site, a refreshingly honest take on a device that is probably going to get someone sued.

The Amiiqo works with a companion Android app, which is used to transfer the amiibo data to the device. The Amiiqo is then used in place of a figure on the Wii U or Nintendo 3DS. It will bring up the latest used figure, and you can cycle through your whole collection with the press of a button.

A back-up device for amiibo data isn’t a bad idea, but considering that this device is unauthorized and bordering on copyright infringement, I don’t think the Amiiqo is going to be long for this world. There’s a certain allure of exclusivity that comes with amiibo collecting, and the Amiiqo undermines that.

In a statement to Polygon, Nintendo said, “Nintendo actively monitors threats to its product security and the unauthorized use of its intellectual property. Nintendo will vigorously enforce its intellectual property rights and will work to protect its greatest assets, its beloved characters and products.”

New ‘Amiiqo’ device lets you spoof Nintendo’s Amiibo data

If you want to unlock all of the exclusive game content that comes with Nintendo Co Ltd.’s Amiibo but don’t have the space in your Malibu Mario Dreamhouse for more figures, then Amiiqo may be the device for you.

Amiibo are Nintendo’s incredibly popular toys-to-life collectibles that use near field communications (NFC) technology to access unique character skins, levels, and other content in certain games for Wii U and 3DS. Depending on how you look at it, they are either cool Nintendo character figures that come with bonus content for some of your games, or they are lame downloadable content saddled with expensive plastic toys that will only take up drawer space.

Either way, gamers who have wanted to check out the Amiibo game content have been forced to buy the figures whether they wanted them or not, but a new device called Amiiqo is about to change that.

Using its companion Android app, Amiiqo is capable of spoofing the data found on Amiibo NFC chips, allowing users to unlock all of the Amiibo content they want without actually having to own them.

The legality of the device seems to fall into the same gray area occupied by game console emulators, which technically require that you own the games whose data you load into them. The makers of Amiiqo don’t really seem to be helping themselves with their description of the device, however, which claims that users can load whatever Amiibo data they want, whether they own it or not.

“With our supplied Android app, you can transfer onto your Amiiqo any Amiibo image you possess,” Amiiqo’s website says. “Whether it comes from your personal backup, from a friend or even if it’s an image downloaded on the internet. The image can be from a ‘blank’ (new, unplayed) figurine but also from a Amiibo that was already levelled up or with power-ups, making it a super effective cheat system.”

Amiiqo Product Review and Giveaway!!

www.NFCGM.com

Team Hackinformer recommends picking up Amiiqo at NFCGM to get a decent price and good customer service. NFCGM is an USA reseller and all stock ships directly from California, USA. Check out their site here.

It seems like only yesterday, I discovered the wonders of Amiiqo and Maxlanders. DLC’s (Downloadable Content) are everywhere and it shows no sign of slowing down. At first developers used this concept as a means to extend the replay value of your game. However, over time this content was either already in game or watered down to the point of feeling ripped off. Let’s look at Mario Kart DLC for example, there are 19 Amiibo outfits to purchase. 12.99 x 19 Amiibos = $246.81 (Not including taxes) WTF! I’m a big supporter of the big N but this is ridiculous. Amiibos are so popular, even the evil EA is jealous!!!

You can’t take all your Amiibos, even with Amiibo cases that’s a lot to carry around. Its not portable or viable to be transporting all your valuables. I for one always try to carry light as possible, it’s not fun to be tied down with so many items. I’m constantly traveling and I can’t afford to pack everything I need to enjoy my games to the fullest. Digital content has made it easier to take your gaming anywhere you want. Plus I don’t think you will be the popular one with carrying around Amiibo bags.

Nothing could be worse than someone stealing or damaging your hard earned investments. Thats a lot to worry about and these days, who has time to pack everything. I’m sure many of you agree since, I have had overwhelming support for Amiiqo and Maxlanders, I’ll get into Maxlanders at a later date. You can check out my Amiiqo joins the battle article here.

If anyone follows me @8BitBang via twitter, you know I got an interesting package. Thanks to Sandy, I was able to receive a nice sample to bring this review to you. Hopefully after this review, you will finally see the full potential of Amiiqo. Now with introductions out of the way, lets get to this wonderful unboxing.

My first impressions were, “Amiiqo is so small!!!” Wow, I didn’t expect this product to be so portable. This is nice and convenient, I can definitely see how useful this product can be. Amiiqo has nice presentation with its labeling, this is how I’d imagine retails stores would sell it. No hard plastic or scissors required to open this product. Its really annoying that manufacturers find the need to do this, especially when they package the scissors you need in hard plastic. How ironic is that? lol. You need to familiarize yourself with terms and functions of your Amiiqo.

• Precautions

Using Amiiqo is pretty straight forward and I’ll guide you thru it if you have any doubts in yourself. Before we begin, lets discuss precautions with maintaining your backups. Anytime you remove banks you risk the possibility of losing your backups and the 10 included with your Amiiqo. Given the nature of the included Amiibos, you cannot simply restore these backups. Some are unreleased, therefore you have no option to restore these leaked backups. Your Amiiqo comes with

1. DarkPit

2. Palutena

3. Ganondorf

4. Falco
5. R.O.B

6. Link

7. Mario

8. Pikachu

9. Yoshi

10. Donkey Kong

• Managing Banks

Banks are the backups present in your Amiiqo. Every time you scan your Amiiqo it will give you information about your banks and amount present. When you add or remove banks your Amiiqo will request to scan it in order to update the present count in available.

• Backups:

The backups you make with Amiiqo are stored in a BIN format. These backups are stored in your Internal storage and there’s no setting to change it to the SD card. Even if you move your BIN files over to the SD card, you cannot assign banks from the SD. This limitation may be removed at later firmware or app update.

• Lock & Unlocking:

The Purpose of these functions is to change Amiiqo’s modes. Lock mode for using the Amiiqo as an Amiibo with character select mod. Unlock mode is for adding and removing Amiibos from Amiiqo.

1. Setting Up Amiiqo

You can start off by downloading the android companion app and its available to download  here. Make sure you allow Unknown sources in your phone to install the Amiiqo apk. Be sure to activate your NFC function on your android device. Once you run the app, it will ask you to scan the Amiiqo for the first time. Once I did, it asked to update the Amiiqo firmware to the latest version. I find this very useful as the Amiiqo Team can always add more functionality, improve stability and add support for any special amiibos that may release in the future.

2. Making Backups

Let’s begin by making a backup of our own, I’ll use my Link Amiibo for example purposes.

1. Once you scan your Amiibo of choice you have options to Dump and Unlock
2. Select Dump and scan the Amiibo on your NFC sensor
3. You Dump will display the name of the BIN and remember the name

 3. Adding Amiibos to your Amiiqo Collection

Now that you made your first backup, lets add it to the Amiiqo

1. Re-scan your Amiiqo and select the option Set Bankcount
2. Add the amount of backups your currently have, since I have just Link I’ll set the amount to 11
3. It will ask you to scan the Amiiqo again, this will save the Bankcount to 11
4. Now select Manage Bankcount, you will be greeted with blank file named Bank #11
5. Click on 11 and file browser will appear, locate your BIN file and press OK
6. Amiiqo will generate the appropriate icon for your backup
7. Now go back to the main menu and it will ask you to scan the Amiiqo.
8. Profit

 4. Locking and Unlocking Amiiqo

Now that you have your Amiiqo setup, let’s get ready to rumble

1. Select the Lock option and then scan the Amiiqo
2. This is will change Amiiqo to Amiibo mode with character selection

The Lock mode will be used with daily function to use with WiiU and 3DS. A simple click will switch banks to change your Amiibo character. When in this mode you cannot add or remove Amiibos until you Unlock it again.

1. Scan Amiiqo and it will behave like a normal Amiibo
2. Select Unlock and press+hold the button after the Amiiqo makes the scan sound.
3. Now your back to Unlock Mode

My hands on experience with Amiiqo has been mostly a positive experience. Some users have reported issues with making backups of the Lucario Amiibo. This is no problem, as Amiiqo doesn’t have an icon for the Lucario backups ATM. This is a minor issue and a simple update can remedy this. I had no problem making backups and adding them to Amiiqo. Below are some examples of how Amiiqo can change your gaming experience.

www.NFCGM.com

Team Hackinformer recommends picking up Amiiqo at NFCGM to get a decent price and good customer service. NFCGM is an USA reseller and all stock ships directly from California, USA. Check out their site here.

It seems like only yesterday, I discovered the wonders of Amiiqo and Maxlanders. DLC’s (Downloadable Content) are everywhere and it shows no sign of slowing down. At first developers used this concept as a means to extend the replay value of your game. However, over time this content was either already in game or watered down to the point of feeling ripped off. Let’s look at Mario Kart DLC for example, there are 19 Amiibo outfits to purchase. 12.99 x 19 Amiibos = $246.81 (Not including taxes) WTF! I’m a big supporter of the big N but this is ridiculous. Amiibos are so popular, even the evil EA is jealous!!!

You can’t take all your Amiibos, even with Amiibo cases that’s a lot to carry around. Its not portable or viable to be transporting all your valuables. I for one always try to carry light as possible, it’s not fun to be tied down with so many items. I’m constantly traveling and I can’t afford to pack everything I need to enjoy my games to the fullest. Digital content has made it easier to take your gaming anywhere you want. Plus I don’t think you will be the popular one with carrying around Amiibo bags.

Nothing could be worse than someone stealing or damaging your hard earned investments. Thats a lot to worry about and these days, who has time to pack everything. I’m sure many of you agree since, I have had overwhelming support for Amiiqo and Maxlanders, I’ll get into Maxlanders at a later date. You can check out my Amiiqo joins the battle article here.

If anyone follows me @8BitBang via twitter, you know I got an interesting package. Thanks to Sandy, I was able to receive a nice sample to bring this review to you. Hopefully after this review, you will finally see the full potential of Amiiqo. Now with introductions out of the way, lets get to this wonderful unboxing.

My first impressions were, “Amiiqo is so small!!!” Wow, I didn’t expect this product to be so portable. This is nice and convenient, I can definitely see how useful this product can be. Amiiqo has nice presentation with its labeling, this is how I’d imagine retails stores would sell it. No hard plastic or scissors required to open this product. Its really annoying that manufacturers find the need to do this, especially when they package the scissors you need in hard plastic. How ironic is that? lol. You need to familiarize yourself with terms and functions of your Amiiqo

//

• Precautions

Using Amiiqo is pretty straight forward and I’ll guide you thru it if you have any doubts in yourself. Before we begin, lets discuss precautions with maintaining your backups. Anytime you remove banks you risk the possibility of losing your backups and the 10 included with your Amiiqo. Given the nature of the included Amiibos, you cannot simply restore these backups. Some are unreleased, therefore you have no option to restore these leaked backups. Your Amiiqo comes with

1. DarkPit

2. Palutena

3. Ganondorf

4. Falco
5. R.O.B

6. Link

7. Mario

8. Pikachu

9. Yoshi

10. Donkey Kong

• Managing Banks

Banks are the backups present in your Amiiqo. Every time you scan your Amiiqo it will give you information about your banks and amount present. When you add or remove banks your Amiiqo will request to scan it in order to update the present count in available.

• Backups:

The backups you make with Amiiqo are stored in a BIN format. These backups are stored in your Internal storage and there’s no setting to change it to the SD card. Even if you move your BIN files over to the SD card, you cannot assign banks from the SD. This limitation may be removed at later firmware or app update.

• Lock & Unlocking:

The Purpose of these functions is to change Amiiqo’s modes. Lock mode for using the Amiiqo as an Amiibo with character select mod. Unlock mode is for adding and removing Amiibos from Amiiqo.

1. Setting Up Amiiqo

You can start off by downloading the android companion app and its available to download  here. Make sure you allow Unknown sources in your phone to install the Amiiqo apk. Be sure to activate your NFC function on your android device. Once you run the app, it will ask you to scan the Amiiqo for the first time. Once I did, it asked to update the Amiiqo firmware to the latest version. I find this very useful as the Amiiqo Team can always add more functionality, improve stability and add support for any special amiibos that may release in the future.

2. Making Backups

Let’s begin by making a backup of our own, I’ll use my Link Amiibo for example purposes.

1. Once you scan your Amiibo of choice you have options to Dump and Unlock
2. Select Dump and scan the Amiibo on your NFC sensor
3. You Dump will display the name of the BIN and remember the name

 3. Adding Amiibos to your Amiiqo Collection

Now that you made your first backup, lets add it to the Amiiqo

1. Re-scan your Amiiqo and select the option Set Bankcount
2. Add the amount of backups your currently have, since I have just Link I’ll set the amount to 11
3. It will ask you to scan the Amiiqo again, this will save the Bankcount to 11
4. Now select Manage Bankcount, you will be greeted with blank file named Bank #11
5. Click on 11 and file browser will appear, locate your BIN file and press OK
6. Amiiqo will generate the appropriate icon for your backup
7. Now go back to the main menu and it will ask you to scan the Amiiqo.
8. Profit

 4. Locking and Unlocking Amiiqo

Now that you have your Amiiqo setup, let’s get ready to rumble

1. Select the Lock option and then scan the Amiiqo
2. This is will change Amiiqo to Amiibo mode with character selection

The Lock mode will be used with daily function to use with WiiU and 3DS. A simple click will switch banks to change your Amiibo character. When in this mode you cannot add or remove Amiibos until you Unlock it again.

1. Scan Amiiqo and it will behave like a normal Amiibo
2. Select Unlock and press+hold the button after the Amiiqo makes the scan sound.
3. Now your back to Unlock Mode

My hands on experience with Amiiqo has been mostly a positive experience. Some users have reported issues with making backups of the Lucario Amiibo. This is no problem, as Amiiqo doesn’t have an icon for the Lucario backups ATM. This is a minor issue and a simple update can remedy this. I had no problem making backups and adding them to Amiiqo. Below are some examples of how Amiiqo can change your gaming experience.

I know some you have noticed, this product puts iOS users at a disadvantage. While others are probably wondering the price point of this product. Rest assure there’s good news for everyone. Team Amiiqo has announced a price drop from its early adopter price tag of $89.99 USD. The new price will be lowered to an affordable retail price of $49.99USD to all resellers soon. To even sweeten the deal, they also announced a NFC to USB accessory to use with PC. This will fill in the gap for all iOS and Non-NFC android smartphone users. Additionally, you can even preorder the NFC to USB accessory for $29.95USD. I hope you enjoyed this article as much as I did writing it. Keep an eye out for my upcoming articles with another product review. Now since this was all about Amiibo I’d figure its time for another giveaway.

I have decided to giveaway the Amiibo Retro 3 pack set. All you have to do is comment on this article or retweet this article and follow me via Twitter@8BitBang . I do this stuff for you guys and its always a treat to giveback to loyal Hackinformer Fans. Good Luck to all and I’ll announce the winner at a later date using randomdotorg.

Amiiqo Device Makes Amiibo Piracy Possible

An unofficial device called the Amiiqo will now enable Nintendo Amiibo owners to back up the data stored on their figurines—and could also allow others to pirate the figurines’ data.

Amiibo are tiny figurines that connect wirelessly to a 3DS or Wii U gaming system, unlocking bonus features like extra characters or playing modes. With the Amiiqo, an owner of multiple Amiibo can store all their data in one place, and only need the one tiny device to access everything.

But the device can also download figurine data from other users, which means Amiiqo owners could pirate the special features stored on each figurine without having to purchase them individually.

The Amiiqo, which you can pre-order for about $55, purports to come with data from 10 Amiibo already loaded. It requires an Android device to work.

Nintendo has yet to publicly respond to the issue, but they’re probably not very pleased.

Amiiqo video review :How to use Amiiqo?

When I first saw that the Amiiqo device would be available, I just could not wait to get my hands on it, and now that the device is in my hands I can’t wait to show you everything this little tool can do!

The Amiiqo is built well, simple, and to the point. It does everything it claims to do, which is back up, manage and carry your entire amiibo collection on one simple to carry NFC chip. The advantage of that is you won’t have to travel with your valuable collection, potentially damaging or ruining the figures, backing up also allows you to reduce the wear and tear of your original amiibo.

You are going to need a NFC enabled android smart phone ( I currently use a Samsung S3) – However according to the main webpage, the creators of amiiqo plan on releasing a NFC writer to make up for people not having NFC phones – I was able to pick up my S3 a pawn shop for cheap due to it being a Bad ESN.

Backing up your amiibo is simple, you can the amiibo, select DUMP and then scan it again. It almost instantly creates a file and notifies you of the name of said file. The only thing that would make this process easier would be the option to allow you to name the file yourself, because the file name does not give any indication which figure it is until you have scanned it. My recommendation is to write down the file name and which amiibo you scanned, and rename it on the computer, this way when you load it up you are able to search for it with no issue.

Storing your amiibo on the amiiqo is just as easy, first you scan the amiiqo, set how many banks you would like to have on the amiiqo (banks are how many spots you wish to store amiibo) You want to set your bank to the exact amount of amiibo that you plan on storing on the device.

After each change you will be prompted to scan the amiiqo to write the change.
Then you tap the “Manage Banks” and this is where you create the magic. You select a spot, select a file and write it to the amiiqo.

At this point the amiiqo works like any normal amiibo. You can tap it to your Wii U or New 3DS and play. If you want to swap to the next amiibo that you have stored, hold the button down, tap the amiiqo to your game system and it reads the next amiibo in line. You save the amiibo in the same manner you would your normal figures, except you use that button to swap to the next one.

Here is the most important things to keep in mind, even thou you can store up to 200 amiibo on the amiiqo, it doesn’t mean you SHOULD. I find the amiiqo is most effective when you customize your banks to the way you want to use them. For example, if you want to have an 8 amiibo battle on your Wii U, set the amiiqo for 8 banks and set the amiibo you want to use to those 8 banks, do not use extra amiibo, do not mix with incompatible amiibo, because the moment the Wii U / 3DS detects that an amiibo is not compatible, you will have an extremely difficult time getting the amiiqo bank on track to save your progress. I wish there was a way to swap the amiibo inside the amiiqo without having to tap the amiiqo to the system each time, but it could be a limitation to the device and how NFC is only powered during contact with the system. Its just how NFC operates.

You can resave your amiibo to a file by locking it via the phone app, and then backing it up as you would any other amiibo. In fact, that is how I was able to make a file back up of Rob and Falco, both of which will not be available for a month or more.

Speaking of which, the amiiqo team provides you with 10 amiibo on the device for you to start using without having to use an app. Rob, Dark Pit, Falco and others, Many which are difficult to buy or unable to be purchased at the moment, which give the device added value.

The creators promise updates that will add even more value to the device in the future, which include cheats, and better file and figure management.

The device will run you anywhere between $75-$100 USD (about the price of 5-6 amiibo), it does everything it promises to do, and will offer more in the future. The device works with the Animal Crossing Happy Home Cards, and all other amiibo that have been released. I see this being very useful in preserving those cards in your collection and using the amiiqo in their place.

Unofficial Amiibo can use data for any Nintendo figurine

Haven’t had any luck scoring the Amiibo you need to unlock certain goodies in a Wii U or 3DS game? A very, very unofficial accessory might help. Amiiqo device uses an Android app to load the data from any Amiibo (it can store up to 200), including those that already have some gameplay under their belts. The company isn’t shy about the true purposes of its $89 gadget, either. While you can use the Amiiqo for a “personal backup,” it’s really meant to both grab bootleg Amiibo data and help you cheat. It even comes with info for 10 characters out of the box.

To put it mildly, the Amiiqo is swimming in dangerous legal waters. While you’re not swiping the figurines themselves, you are using code that you aren’t supposed to have. We’ve reached out to Nintendo to gauge its stance. However, it won’t be surprising if the console maker cracks down. After all, Nintendo is barely profitable even with the mania that surrounds the Amiibo scene — it’s hard to imagine the company willingly giving up some of its statuette revenue.

Update: Nintendo isn’t detailing its specific answer, but its statement to us suggests that it’s not going to sit idle while Amiiqo runs rampant. Read the full response below.

“Nintendo actively monitors threats to its product security and the unauthorized use of its intellectual property. Nintendo will vigorously enforce its intellectual property rights and will work to protect its greatest assets, its beloved characters and products.”

Amiiqo – A New Way to Have Your Amiibo All on One Device

It is safe to say that Nintendo has scored big with the Amiibo’s. Most are very hard to find, some are impossible. Flippers have really cashed in by taking advantage of the short supply and high demand, selling certain figures upwards of 10x their MSRP. Let’s not forget about multi-child households having to buy multiples of each figure so each child can have their own figure. What if there was a way to not have to buy two of every figure, but also have all of them at your fingertips, their stats and data on one convenient device that works on your 3DS and Wii U? Enter the Amiiqo.

Amiiqo is a new NFC device that, simply put, allows you to copy all your Amiibo data to one device via any NFC compatible Android phone. You can even share entire collections downloaded from the internet. The Amiiqo device is similar in shape and size of the base of most Amiibo figures. There is a button on the side that allows you to cycle through each Amiibo figure you have saved to the device. You can store up to 200 Amiibo to one Amiiqo and it comes preloaded with 10 Amiibo. As of the time of this writing you can only add new Amiibo and update the Amiiqo software through an Android phone that is NFC compatible.

simple process. Download the latest app from Amiiqo.com for your phone. Once installed, you run the software and connect your Amiiqo device. You can then see what Amiibo is on the device and what order they are in. You can then update the device to add your personal Amiibo or download collections from the internet. It will download all stats; so say you have a level 50 Link from Super Smash Bros. You can copy the data from that Amiibo to the Amiiqo. It is overall a simple process as long as you have an Android device with NFC capability. As of now, there is no way to use a PC or iPhone with Amiiqo. So be aware of this before you decide to buy, because if you do not have an Android device you will not be able to transfer or update the Amiiqo. The inclusion of a micro USB port would have been a nice feature that would help those who do not have an Android device.

Overall, I think the Amiiqo is a great device. It is perfect for the family that has multiple children that want to use Amiibo on games. Since the figures can only store one profile, families only need to buy one figure and simply copy it to the Amiiqo. It is also great for collectors who want to use Amiibo on their games but do not want to open their figures. They can simply download collections posted online. It also makes it easier to take your collection from one place to another or to use when you are traveling. The device itself is made of very thin plastic and can easily be taken apart and the button seems very flimsy. Parents, be aware of this and use caution. It could be broken very easily. Also, there is also no way to tell which Amiibo you currently have up on the device itself. You have to remember what order you have them in. If the button is pressed early, you might have to cycle through the whole collections before you find the one you are looking for.

The Amiiqo is retailing for $80 which is a lot but once you compare it to the money spent on Amiibo, $80 doesn’t seem too high. One thing the Amiiqo brings into question is with the ability to download or copy the Amiibo figure that you may not personally own, is it like owning a burned or pirated copy of a game or movie? Also what is the chance that Nintendo will some how end up finding a way to block use of the device? These are all questions that will be answered over time but for now, if you are one who has tried to get that hard to find Amiibo to unlock a race suit in Mario Kart 8 or unlock a character in Code-name S.T.E.A.M., or you just want to back up different builds of your Super Smash Bros Mario Amiibo, the Amiiqo is for you. It is a very cool device that anyone who has interest in Amiibo will love.

Check out http://www.amiiqo.net to find out where to get your Amiiqo, software updates and more info. Thanks to the Amiiqo team for providing a device for review.

The Piracy of amiibo Now Seems Possible With the ‘amiiqo’ Device

Oh, sorry, it’s for ‘backing up’ figures

It’s well known that those with a desire to backup or clone Skylanders figures have had the means to do so, which in part is courtesy of the simplistic NFC technology. Encryption is possible, but it doesn’t take long for someone to break through the security of the humble chips.

Naturally the same threat has followed amiibo since the figures hit the market in November 2014, with peripherals already in existence that can backup data and even manipulate it. One such product that’s already on sale apparently allows you to mess around with data, with one example being to boost the level of a Super Smash Bros. fighter.

Now there’s ‘amiiqo‘, which seems somewhat dodgier in its intention. On the one hand it allows you to use a base with an Android phone (a usb option is also promised) to backup your amiibo data, allowing for multiple figures to be stored on the device. Based on the literature around it – which we won’t link to here – that seems rather like the R4 excuse; the device actually goes much further in that it functions as an amiibo toy with compatible games.

In other words, you can upload data to the disc and scan it into a game like a normal amiibo figure. There’s little attempt to hide the fact that this allows players to download data online and effectively use that amiibo with the device; therefore downloading data for figures that may not be owned be the user. There may be a pretence of pretending amiiqo isn’t a glorified amiibo piracy device, but as it comes equipped with ten amiibo pre-loaded it’s clear what it’s all about.

We suspect there’s little Nintendo can do about this due to the simplicity of NFC technology; software updates to supported games may be an option. In any case, a large part of the appeal with amiibo is in their desirability as figures and collectibles, and this particular device is nowhere near any major retailers. While some well-known retailers do stock unofficial devices that do operate as backup options by scanning amiibo, this one has no such major listings.

It will surely remain a very niche market and device, though no doubt Nintendo will monitor it closely.

Thanks to Ryan Millar for the heads up.

Announcing Amiiqo USB to NFC Reader/Writer

We at Amiiqo inc. are dedicated to updating and improving our product.

Many of our Amiiqo users have sent us feedback and we thank you for that. They
help us with new ideas or simply give us motivation to quickly develop a new
feature faster.

Probably the most requested feature was from people who do not possess a NFC
compatible Android phone. We have prioritized this development area and we are
happy to announce our upcoming : Amiiqo USB to NFC reader writer !

The device will be available late next month, as stand alone or bundled
with an Amiiqo from all your favourite resellers.
Stay tuned for more details, pictures and release date.

[REVIEW/TEST] Amiiqo, l’émulateur de figurines Amiibo

Le Amiiqo est un petit module NFC permettant de dumper /émuler les figurines Amiibo de Nintendo

Le Amiiqo fonctionne grâce à une application téléchargeable sur tout les terminaux Android.

Pré-requis:

• Un terminal Android avec fonction NFC
• L’application “Amiiqo”, disponible sur le site officiel
• Au moins une figurine Amiibo pour le Dump

I. Présentation du Amiiqo:

Le Amiiqo est fourni seul, dans un petit package rappelant celui de certains R4.

Il est légèrement plus petit que le socle d’un Amibo, et possède un petit switch permettant, entre autre, de passer d’un Amiibo à l’autre.

La finition générale du produit est plûtot bonne, rien à signaler de ce coté là. Le Amiiqo est fourni avec 10 figurines pré-chargées et est prévu pour contenir jusqu’à 200 Dumps de figurines Amiibo.

Le Amiiqo est prévu pour être utiliser avec un appareil Android ayant une fonction NFC: En effet, pour  le dump des figurines Amiibos et la gestion de notre “collection”, on doit obligatoirement passer par l’application Android prévu par le constructeur.

Le Amiiqo est fournis avec les 10 Amiibos suivant préchargés:

– 1. DarkPit
– 2. Palutena
– 3. Ganondorf
– 4. Falco
– 5. R.O.B
– 6. Link
– 7. Mario
– 8. Pikachu
– 9. Yoshi
– 10. Donkeykong

II. Dump d’une Figurine Amiibo:

Pour dumper une figurine Amiibo, il va vous falloir la scanner via l’application android Amiibo, ce qui implique donc la nécessité de posséder un appareil avec une fonction NFC.

Voici donc comment procéder pour dumper une de vos figurines Amiibo:

– Lancer l’application Amiiqo sur votre terminal Android. Vous arriverez sur un écran indiquant “Please scan tag”

– Placer le socle de votre Amiibo contre le dos de votre smartphone/Tablette: le message “Normal NTAG NFC tag found” apparaitra alors en dessous du Logo Amiiqo, et les options “DUMP” & “UNLOCK” apparaitrons à l’écran.

– Cliquer sur DUMP, et re-scannez votre Amiibo:

– Celui-ci sera alors dumpé en quelques secondes, et un fichier .bin sera sauvegarder à la racine de la mémoire interne de votre appareil Android.

III. Gestion de la collection d’Amiibo (Banks du Amiiqo):

3.1 Création d’une nouvelle “BANK” dans le boitier Amiiqo:

Commencez par lancer l’application Amiiqo, et scanner le module Amiiqo grâce à votre terminal Android (poser le amiiqo à l’arrière de votre smartphone).

Plusieurs options s’offrent maintenant à vous:

– SET BANKCOUNT

– MANAGE BANKS

– LOCK

Cliquez d’abord sur BANKCOUNT, et selectionnez un emplacement (par défaut, choisissez le 11, les 10 premiers banks contiennent déjà des amiibos pré-chargés)

Ici, nous choisirons le 13, le 11 & le 12 ayant été utilisé avant le tuto, pour charger Yoshi (emplacement 11) et Diddy (emplacement 12).

Le message “tap amiiqo to update bank” apparait alors en dessous du Logo Amiiqo:

Scannez alors le boitier Amiiqo avec votre terminal Android, et normalement, un message confirmant la création d’une nouvelle Bank apparaitra:

3.2 Installation d’un Dump d’Amiibo dans la nouvelle BANK:

Il vous suffit désormais de cliquer sur “Manage Banks”, et de sélectionner votre nouvelle bank vierge, précédemment créée (la 13 dans notre exemple):

Le gestionnaire de fichier de votre terminal Android s’ouvre, et demande alors de charger un dump d’Amiibo: Choisissez celui que vous désirez, et cliquez sur OK. Dans ce tuto, j’ai scanner utiliser le dump de mon Amiibo Zelda.

Après avoir selectionné votre fichier .bin, le message “Please Tap and Hold to write Bank”:

Mettez votre boitier amiiqo contre votre appareil Android NFC en maintenant enfoncé le petit switch du boitier: le message “successfully write Bank #X (X est le n° de votre BANK, la 13 dans ce tuto):

Votre Amiibo est bien copier dans votre Amiiqo! Désormais, votre Dump d’Amiibo est chargé dans la nouvelle Bank précédemment créée, et rempli les même fonctions que votre figurine de base! Vous verrez par ailleurs votre Amiibo, à l’emplacement choisi précedemment, dans l’onglet “Manage Bank”:

IV. Utilisation du Amiiqo sur Wii-U (SmashBros):

4.1 “Bloquer” le Amiiqo en “mode émulation”:

Pour utiliser votre Amiiqo en mode “émulation”, et que celui-ci soit détecté comme une figurine Amiibo, il va falloir utiliser la fonction “LOCK” de l’application Android.

Commencer par scanner votre boitier Amiiqo, puis cliquer sur LOCK.

Un message apparaitra alors, sous le logo Amiiqo, vous demandant de scanner votre Amiiqo: scannez-le

.

Et voilà, votre Amiiqo est maintenant “bloquer” et prêt à être utiliser sur une console Wii-U / 3DS. Lors d’un Scan NFC, le Amiiqo sera désormais reconnu comme ‘normal NTAG NFC”

Le petit bouton du Amiiqo vous permettra de passer d’un backup de figurine à l’autre, par une simple pression

4.2 Utilisation du Amiiqo sur une console Wii-U:

Pour ce tuto, j’ai ajouter 3 banks à mon module Amiiqo, et dumper les 3 Amiibos suivants: yoshi, Zelda et diddy Kong. Je possède donc 13 amiibos sur mon Amiiqo (dont Yoshi qui  est en double) si on compte les 10 Amiibo préchargés.

L’utilisation du module Amiiqo est relativement simple. Une fois le boitier “LOCK” en suivant l’étape précédente, votre amiiqo sera désormais reconnu comme figurine Amiibo par votre console Wii-U.

Voici, par exemple, comment ajouter des Amiibo dans Super Smash Bros for Wii-U avec le Amiiqo:

– Lancez un jeu compatible Amiibo (Super Smas Bros for Wii-U dans cet exemple)

– Cliquer sur Amiibos dans le menu de jeu:

– Quand il vous sera demander de scanner un amiibo, scannez votre boitier Amiiqo.

– Celui-ci sera alors reconnu comme un des Amiibos présent dans votre Amiiqo, et sera alors ajouter au jeu, comme lors du scan d’une figurine officielle.

– Une fois le scan terminer et le premier amiibo ajouté à votre jeu, vous pouvez décider d’en scanner un second: Appuyez et maintenez le switch de votre Amiiqo, posez-le sur l’emplacement NFC de votre Gamepad et relachez le switch: L’Amiibo détecté par la console devrait être différent du premier(le suivant dans votre liste)

– Il vous suffit de répéter les 2 dernière étapes autant de fois que désiré pour entrer tout les Amiibo présent dans votre Amiiqo dans votre jeu Super Smash Bros for Wii-U (ou dans tout autre jeu compatible Ammibos)

Et voici une vidéo réalisée par mes soins présentant l’Amiiqo en action sur Wii-U:

http://www.dailymotion.com/swf/x31iifs

4.3. “Débloquer” votre Amiiqo:

Pour a nouveau ajouter des Amiibo et gérer la collection d’Amiibo dans votre module Amiiqo, celui-ci nécessite d’être “débloquer”.

Voici la marche à suivre pour débloquer votre Amiiqo:

– Scannez votre Amiiqo: le message “normal NTAG NFC TAG FOUND” apparait, comme lors du scan d’un Amiibo.

– Cliquez sur UNLOCK: “Tap and Press+Hold Button after scan sound” apparait alors sous le Logo Amiiqo

– Scannez votre Amiqo, et immédiatement après le son de l’appli indiquant le scan, appuyez et maintenez le switch du Amiiqo enfoncé. Celui-ci devrait alors se débloquer, et le message “Amiiqo Found” devrait apparaitre sous le Logo Amiiqo

V. Mise à jour du Firmware du Amiiqo:

Il  est possible de mettre à jour le firmware du Amiiqo simplement. Le sample fourni par le fabriquant était en version 1.0, et victime d’un bug sur certaines consoles Wii-U. Un patch (appli amiiqo v1.1) à donc été mis à notre disposition afin de mettre à jour le firmware du module Amiiqo.

Voici la marche à suivre pour mettre à jour votre module Amiiqo:

– Téléchargez la dernière version de l’application Android (ici, version 1.1) et installez là.

– Lancez l’appli et scannez votre amiiqo. Un message indiquant que votre firmware doit être mis à jour apparaitra alors:

– Rescannez alors votre boitier Amiiqo, et laissez le plaquer a votre appareil Android NFC jusqu’à ce qu’un message indiquant que la mise à jour à réussi apparaisse dans une fenêtre “popup”

VI. CONCLUSION:

Le Amiiqo se veut relativement simple d’utilisation, et permet de copier toute nos figurines Amiibo dans un seul petit boitier, bien plus pratique à utiliser que 50 figurines différentes. Si ce n’est le prix un brin élevé, et l’obligation de posséder un terminal Android avec la norme NFC, le Amiiqo est un excellent produit, qui remplit parfaitement ces fonctions de Dump et Emulation des figurines Amiibos

Les plus:

• Permet de copier les Amiibo
• Peut contenir 200 figurines, dans un tout petit boitier
• Assez simple d’utilisation
• Permet de rentrer ces figurines dans les jeux sans manipuler nos précieux Amiibos de collection
• Firmware updatable

Les moins:

• Le prix, un brin élevé à l’achat (environ 80/90€)
• L’obligation d’avoir un terminal sous Android, compatible avec la norme NFC

Site Officiel: amiiqo.com