Random I-Tunes Song of The Moment: Disposable Heroes by The Scorched Earth Orchestra

Noted 2.0 by Gary Jones Review:

One Gimmick, 9 minutes and $25 bucks. Is it gem or is it rubble? Stay tuned to find out.

Effect

A hand held notepad instantly changes into a deck of cards. That's it, folks. Simple.

Method

The method is a super clever gimmick that pretty much does all the work for you. You literally just have to be able to lift your finger. That's it. This method is clean, easy, and within the grasp of any skill level as far as the technical demands go. As always, you must have presentational skill to go with it.

Ad Copy Integrity

The only thing I would question is the claim that it happens " . . . right in front of their eyes." Though the needed cover is minimal, it is needed nonetheless. In the DVD, Gary Jones shows us a way to effect the change as you're handing out the marker. That is plenty of cover to do the move.

Also, the ad copy claims that you can write on the gimmick. That's true. But it must be a dry erase marker. If you're openly using a dry erase marker on the gimmick, this might make the spectators suspicious. My understanding is that SansMinds carries a dry erase pen that looks like a Sharpie. I can neither confirm nor deny if this is a good product. I've never used one and have no opinion of it. However, if it's a good product, I'd recommend you use it or something like it if you plan on writing on your Noted 2.0 gimmick.

Product Quality

The gimmick itself is perfect. It looks great, handles well, is very durable and will likely last a very long time, and is super easy to use. The DVD, on the other hand, is a totally different story. First, they barely explained anything. There was an "idea" for using this with an Invisible Deck. Rather than having an Invisible Deck on hand to show us how it might work, they just sort of talked through it.

That was a problem for two reasons. First, the audio on this (and just about every Magic Tao product I've watched) is atrocious. Even with my volume at 100%, I could barely hear anything. Further, If you know an Invisible Deck, you know that the card they name determines how you handle the deck. This means that you may have to turn the deck over to perform the effect. So when the deck "appears," it may be facing the wrong way. They give a somewhat decent way to deal with this . . . I think; it's hard to say since I couldn't hear them. Seeing an actual performance of this and the other ideas they brushed over would have made this a much better product.

Final Thoughts

This is the kind of thing that drives me crazy as a reviewer. This product has serious potential to be a 5 star product. The gimmick is smart and looks great. However, they give you nine minutes of essentially mumbling about the gimmick rather than any real training. I say mumbling due to the fact that the audio was so quiet, I could barely hear them. Invest in some microphones, people. They're very cheap. If you watch the videos I shoot that accompany my reviews, I'm assuming the audio level is sufficient. I'm just using my iPhone and that's it. No extra microphone or anything special.

I'm not even asking you to pay for this. Yet Magic Tao is asking you to pay for a supposedly professionally shot video with ridiculously poor audio. It's frustrating and it makes the final rating a bit difficult. What it comes down to is this: if you have a use for the prop or the effect of changing a notepad to a deck of cards, you'll love this product. If you're looking to learn the ins and outs of how to use such a product, you'll be a bit disappointed, but still be able to work your way through it.

Review Update (1/15/15)

Hey everyone, if you take a look at the comments below and the review above, you'll notice I had an issue with the audio. Several months ago, Costas sent me a new video where the audio was much better. They apparently had a bad batch of DVDs. This problem has been fixed. I've bumped the star rating up from 3 to 3.5 stars and the Stone Status from "gem with a super small g" to "gem with a small g."

Final Verdict:
3.5 Stars with a Stone Status of gem with a small 'g.'