I have an Amiko Mini HD that I haven't used too much, mostly because it is new and the MicroHD was my first FTA receiver. I have it hooked up now so I can draw some conclusions in direct comparison to the MicroHD. I can't give a full review because I'm not completely familiar with it.
The MiniHD is functionally equivalent to the 8240, at least that's what I'm lead to believe.
Some problematic TPs on the MicroHD are tuned wthout issues on the MiniHD, namely the LPBS off 87 SES1. The MicroHD tunes them with a strong signal, then over 5 seconds or so they will fall out of lock. The signal stays consistent with a lock on the MiniHD. The RTV/PBJ ku signals off 83 cannot be locked with the MicroHD. The MiniHD locks them without issue.
The scan of a single TP is usually much quicker on the MiniHD. Entering the MiniHD menu and adding specific TPs and doing a tp scan is much easier and quicker on the Mini due to the menu layout and one-button push (green?) to tp scan.
The Mini remote has a much better feel (build quality) and functionality than the MicroHD. Navigating the MicroHD system menu for antenna and setup is clunky in that the response is often delayed or doubled upon a button push. Sometimes the MicroHD gets caught in a series of executions, like memory gets full or a processor gets bugged down. I've been stuck waiting for the unit to proceed through a series of remote commands, taking 5+ seconds between responses.
Other quirks in navigating the MicroHD menus require some work-arounds when switching between satellite/antenna setup, and TP scans. Example; if I want to do a TP scan, I have to enter the satellite scan menu, back out then enter the tp scan menu, just to avoid the MicroHD trying to move the dish to some other location than the one I'm on. Going into the Antenna setup menu is frustrating in that the navigation is clunky and delayed due to the automatic command trying to move the satellite.
One thing I do not like about the MiniHD when compared to the MicroHD is in running the DVR function. The MicroHD gives you one button push to be at the timer setup or program playback menu. The MiniHD requires 5-6 button pushes to get to the DVR menu. The MicroHD will display the timers in a list so you can see about 10 at a time. The MiniHD presents the timers on a screen, one at a time. That makes it tough for guys like me with terrible short term memory
I much prefer channel navigation on the MiniHD. You can choose from satellites and channels in a matrix, whereas the MicroHD presents the information sequentially in a single list. On the MiniHD, I can pick a satellite and see the channels without having to tune them. I can then choose a different satellite to see its channels. All without tuning to the channel.
I'm not meaning to bag on the MicroHD, but it's the only receiver that I can draw comparisons to. I do have an AzBox Premium HD+, but I've only used it to scan specific TPs for 4:2:2 broadcast.
If you have a specific question on the Amiko, I can try to answer it or at least see how the Amiko behaves in some scenario.
I have the MiniHD and MicroHD running a Geosat Pro 90cm on an SG9120B hitting 30w to 125w, and an 8' channelmaster. I swap them out, so they see the same switch setup for my comparisons.
Another point of comparison, the MicroHD can be assigned a diseqc 1.2 location directly in the menu. It appears the MiniHD doesn't offer that ability, but assigns diseqc 1.2 slots randomly. This is the reason I haven't been using the MiniHD to directly control the 8' VBOX controller, which is completely programmed for all the sat locations.
I have not done a bunch of blind scans with the MiniHD to be able to draw a comparison. But I have done programmed TP scans. Like the MiniHD single TP scan performance mentioned above, the multiple TP scans are completed much quicker than the MicroHD scans.
