I’m getting older, but I still love Christmas and yes, still have fun opening presents myself. One of my favorite gifts I received this year was a Flip Camera by Cisco. These very light, portable cameras film HD quality videos that you can easily upload to YouTube. You can also do some basic editing with them as well.

Flip Cameras make recording your own Upper Deck box breaks easier than ever!

I remember just a couple years ago getting quality like this would have taken a very expensive camera and some expensive software as well. Now you can get one of these cameras for about $100. Most phones nowadays take great video as well that you can easily upload or send based on the device you have. And it’s only going to get easier to record, edit and publish your own videos as time goes on. Technology is so cool.

I thought about how many other people got a gift like this that love collecting and opening new Upper Deck packs. No doubt, there will be even more box and pack break videos in 2011 than we saw in 2010. We get about 25 requests a week to sponsor box or pack break videos by collectors and various new bloggers. With so many of these cameras out there, it’s easy to see why. Nowadays, almost anyone can make a pack or box break video.

But therein lies the problem in my humble opinion. More often than not, people are making the same video. You’ll see a set of hands and the box and that’s usually about it. Or, you’ll see a couple of people at a table talking about the product, but nothing really that different. By in large, unless they pull something amazing, if you’ve seen one box break video, you’ve seen them all.

When they do pull something great, it can be pretty fun. You see their hands start to shake. They slip and use a little profanity from time to time, which reminds me: Warning, some of the videos shared here do use strong language! It is definitely a great way to share the pack-breaking experience. Here’s one I just love:

I really feel like we are missing out on the creative part of what makes box break videos so great, which is the collector. I recently watched a couple of break videos that were just a lot of fun. My hope in sharing them is to inspire you to think outside the box when you pick up the camera to record a pack or box break. Check out how fun, and most of all, how different these video breaks are:

These guys decided to open a box of 2010-11 NHL Artifacts on a plane. While drinking. And hiding the camera from the flight attendant. And trying not to have all the cards fall on the floor. I had never seen a box break like this and thought it was just great because it was so different.

I also love this new video by Andrew Long who has done a lot of fun videos over the last couple years where he has taken “Packs to the People.” In this video, he finds himself in Toronto and somehow sneaks into the Air Canada Centre. He manages to get down on center ice while they are doing maintenance in the building. As if that weren’t enough, he spins the camera like a wheel with each break which gives you additional proof that he’s really there. He doesn’t pull anything that great, but with some funny comments, he makes a very enjoyable and unique box break video.

Additionally, if you are talking about fun box break videos, the first real innovator here was Dr. Wax Battle at the Backstop in Toms River, NJ. Check out his website where I recently watched him bust a box at the beach. You just worry through the whole video knowing that sand and trading cards don’t mix. Luckily he wasn’t opening Upper Deck packs in that video so it doesn’t really matter.  🙂

There are other shops and online retailers that do some great box breaks like the Doc, and they should be doing that. It’s a great way for them to create interest in the products they sell. The people I really want to see having fun with box breaks in 2011 are the collectors.

So my challenge to you is this: Step out of your comfort zone and make a different pack or box break video in 2011. Get out of the house. Open packs on a tour bus or on a ride. Do something different. Get your grandma, your principal, your girlfriend, your boss, your drill sergeant, whoever, opening a box or pack on video. Give your dog the cards you don’t want.* Have fun opening the packs. That’s what these videos are supposed to be all about.

And for those of you willing to take my challenge by recording a different type of pack or box break video with Upper Deck products, please e-mail me the link at [email protected]. I’ll highlight my favorites here on the blog towards the end of January. I’ll also set up an Upper Deck mail day for those who we feature on the blog.

Who knows, with my new Flip Camera, maybe I’ll make my own video as well. Are you creative enough to come up with a better pack or box break than me? I did the Santa pack break after all. Ho-Ho-Ho!!!

* Please don’t really feed cards to your dog. And of course, use good judgment when making your videos. For example, please don’t open packs while you drive, etc.