Collectors of Pokémon cards would love to know what’s inside unopened packs. A technique from the medical world lets you look inside.
What exactly do the collectors use? The usual way in the scene to estimate the value of unopened packs is to weigh them. The foil around rare cards inside the pack adds extra weight. From now on, it is possible to determine not only with a high degree of certainty whether there is a rare card in the pack, but also exactly which one it is. The magic word is: computer tomography (CT).
Where does CT technology come from? The new approach, using high-tech from medicine, uses CT X-ray machines, such as those used to examine the brain. But such imaging techniques are now also widespread in industry, for example to detect material deficiencies.
A 3D image made up of countless layers
How does such a scan work? The CT scanner examines the object, in this case the packet of Pokémon cards, and, to put it simply, takes hundreds of individual images from different directions. This is possible because either the antenna rotates or the object is on a rotating surface. The computer uses this to build 3D objects on which the outlines of writing or images can be guessed.
The following YouTube video shows you such a scan and what the result looks like. In this case, the secret is not revealed for a single packet, but for an entire box. In another video entitled “Collecting Pokémon cards will never be the same again,” YouTuber okJLUV goes into more detail about the technology.
Youtuber Ahron Wayne’s Strange Brain developed a similar method using a second-hand CT scanner.
What does the Pokémon community say about this? There is a fear that the value of scanned packs will drop, or simply frustration that a cornerstone of the hobby could be destroyed, far removed from any monetary considerations. However, it is currently unclear exactly how this technology could affect things.
How much does it cost and can I book it? Theoretically yes, but the company Industrial Inspection & Consulting is based in the USA. The cost for the scan alone is around 75 dollars per pack.
Shipping from Germany and returning it to you could certainly increase the total price to around 150 euros. An insured package to the USA with DHL alone costs almost fifty euros. For that, you can buy a lot of new packs of Pokémon cards and trust in your luck.
Ahron Wayne’s Strange Brain efforts have not progressed very far commercially yet. According to the information in the video linked above, he is still looking for business partners.
Does this also work with Magic Boosters? Yes, in principle this technique should work with all packs for trading card games.
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