Last week, we took a quick trip over to Nick’s Sports Cards — the closest hobby shop in our neck of the woods — to get a few lunch-hour reactions to Upper Deck’s EVOLUTION.

With the video card in my hand and the video camera in Olds’, we set out to capture as many opinions as we could get during an admittedly low-traffic time. While we weren’t able to put the industry innovation in hundreds of hands that day, we definitely managed to spark some real interest and honest discussion about the latest hobby brainchild.

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While Blake Griffin and the Los Angeles Clippers lost to the Mavericks last week, the superstar’s trip to the Big D was far from being a bust in the hobby. As previously mentioned, Griffin made a pit stop at Panini America headquarters to do some quality controlling on his soon-to-release HRX video card.

The NBA’s hottest rookie — a self-identified former collector — also took some time to sit down and break some boxes with Panini America CEO Mark Warsop.

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By Andrew Tolentino | Football Editor

This weekend’s Weekend Wonder is:  Upper Deck’s Evolution — soon to be the market’s first video trading card.

Because this innovation has already received its fair share of knee-jerk reactions — positive and negative — we’re hoping for a little more elaboration here. Considering both sides of the coin, tell us why you love it, hate it, or even explain why you’re entirely indifferent about it.

If you’re really feeling adventurous, feel free to respond to part or all of this long-winded prompt, specifically:

Despite previous attempts by Upper Deck — and other industry leaders — to create tech-based collectibles, many of these concepts seem to have flopped in the hobby. What then, is the significance or motivation for moving beyond the basics? Why would a manufacturer expand with modern technology when the core of its existence is something as simple as cardboard? How do future generations of collectors benefit or suffer from these efforts?

No matter your stance, your voice is crucial to the collecting world. Tell us and other hobbyists what you’re thinking this weekend. Who knows? Your words might end up in the next issue of Beckett Football.

Andrew Tolentino is the editor of Beckett Football and Beckett Hockey. Ask him a question, send him a rant or spark a dialogue via e-mail at atolentino@beckett.com or tweet him @tolentinotweets

Making an appearance at the Bracket Town festivities, Upper Deck unveiled its video cards to a concentrated audience of sports fans in Houston.

At this point, you’ve probably come to conclusion that our prototype was a practical joke — inspired by the leg-pulling joy of April Fool’s Day. The video below, however, offers a real glimpse of real people (not that I’m not real) getting some hands-on experience with Evolution.

Click here to view the embedded video.