Fooled by a phone charger?? Bryan Saint on Penn & Teller: Fool Us!

Can this magician fool Penn and Teller just by charging Penn's phone? Watch what Bryan Saint does on Penn & Teller: Fool Us!
On the season 5 finale of Penn & Teller: Fool Us (S5, E13 "Let's Hear it for the Kids), Charlotte NC magician Bryan Saint brings rope magic into the 21st century by using a phone charger. In Penn & Teller's own words, "Rope tricks don't mean much anymore; this means everything." Bryan then borrows Penn Jillette's phone and adds an interesting twist. Check out what happens!
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[@thebryansaint]

For behind the scenes info on this performance, check out our new video! Learn why part of the performance had to be shot twice, exactly how many people have correctly guessed the secret of the trick, and why we weren't scared of Penn having an Android! Commentary and Reaction to Fooling Penn & Teller! ~ kzbin.info/www/bejne/b3rUeJVqr66qjrM

[@RZDOOM]

really enjoyed that BTS talk. Glad you had a good time, man. Congrats.

[@kory075]

Excellent routine. My eyes didn't leave the screen. Good stuff sir

[@MrSteveVBJ]

Penn having an Apple iPhone you mean ? 😁😁

[@Me_and_mysister]

You have some awesome abilities.....and a Feature of Hero

[@animishaalagappa2327]

I think electroboom had showed the charging trick..... So, in the end, i guess, science overpowers magic 😂

[@KombatGod]

I love how every Fool Us clip is on each magician's personal channel. Other programs would often have all the clips on their own channel, but not this one. That's an additional very sweet way for Penn & Teller to support the magicians on their show!

[@ctfashow]

Absolutely!

[@AshBashSneakers]

so true

[@AlanCampbellFilm]

Probs be better for the Magician if it was on an official Fool Us Channel. Would get a lot more views and help launch them into getting a following.

[@topleybird2443]

Yeh it’s really quite cool of them to just let people use their show for self-promotion, no copyright takedowns or anything. Must’ve been hell to arrange that with the network that aired this.

[@st_king_jay]

exactly

[@mckennaConfig]

The real trick is that he had the right charger for Penn's phone.

[@iamokayiswear]

The producers could've easily told him what phone and charge port Penn had.

[@gimpystimpy5304]

Kirt McKenna or he coulda made a guess that he was in the majority of people who own iphones

[@tobywenman4769]

@@gimpystimpy5304 this actually isn't true anymore.

[@DamienTB]

@@gimpystimpy5304 Where do you get your numbers from that the "majority of people own iphones" ?

[@jpmthemonk]

@@tobywenman4769 iPhones do have majority market share in the US, but not across global markets. It's a fairly reasonable guess.

[@austinp123]

Ik it was legit when he couldn't plug in USB first time

[@fruitypeebils]

i think that newer usb types can be plugged in on either side. thank god

[@rdm0108]

It's part of the gag. He planned it.

[@demospolsion6539]

fruitypeebils USB type c

[@marchendrickson2382]

@@markdavis7397 Ain't that the truth!

[@RoarOfWolverine]

Mark Davis it funny how they do seem to work that way. How is it the third side of the USB always worked. Sometimes, when I’m really frustrated I have to try the fourth or fifth side before it goes in.

[@2ethefirst318]

seeing these comments really makes me think of what eric mead said on his fool us performance which was along the lines of "if you show an average person a trick, if they understand 10% then they'll say they weren't fooled, but if you show a fellow magician a trick, and they're fooled by 10% of the trick, they'll admit they've been fooled"

[@ckay8145]

Well we all know that they know how the rope thing works but they got fooled by the easiest part

[@kolosmenus]

To be honest, they might have no idea how exactly the charger works, but the only possible answer is "it's a gimmick charger". I'm not sure they need to have the full knowledge of how exactly the gimmick works for it to not count as fooling them, especially when it comes to electrical appliances.

[@frego24]

Well but by that logic all technology is a magic trick. I bet you can't explain 10% of how a phone or the internet works, yet it doesn't fool you, because you have a basic understanding of how it works. The rope trick variation probably fooled most of us, but not Penn and teller. The details in a magic trick that rely on technology aren't important, only the basic principle, because after that it just becomes engineering and stops being magic.

[@ckay8145]

@@frego24 What are you trying to say ?

[@andrewcharles459]

Some of that routine I could see through and some of it I couldn't. The bits I could see or predict don't spoil a thing because I can (and do) still admire the skill of the execution. Now, as far as P&T being fooled by the charger, which _should_ be a simple see-through, I have to assume there was another element to that illusion which rendered it inoperable when Mr. Saint handed it over to them for examination. One of the very first magic tricks I ever saw in my whole life was when my grade school teacher had a "magic" light bulb. When she held it in her hand, it would glow, but not one other person could do it - because no one else wore a ring, which was needed to complete the circuit. I assume this charger had a similar sort of dead-man switch.

[@blu_laza]

Wouldnt it be awkward if penn had an android

[@911madza]

he prolly had lightning to micro usb adapter in his pocket for that

[@purpleey]

Penn is rich af so he prob knew penn had iphone

[@samdilworth1989]

Haha thats great.

[@demospolsion6539]

Blu Laza Probably asked beforehand

[@fedos]

Easy to check with the producers what type of phone Penn uses.

[@qqccrryy]

I love how utterly *delighted* Teller looks at the end when he lets them examine the cord. And the little nod!

[@ToeTag1968]

He almost broke character and said "thank you." Caught himself last second. :)

[@bs-gi3gs]

@@ToeTag1968 HE WAS REALLY ABOUT TO MOUTH THANK YOU 🤣🤣🤣🤣 Made me laugh more than it should.

[@Asteru]

Plugging the usb upside down: Theoretical probability: 50% Experimental probability: 100%

[@2019inuyasha]

actual world 150%. you have to turn it over twice to get it to work, no one doing the math would have calculated that !

[@hardwirecars]

@@2019inuyasha plug wrong flip wrong flip correct... how the hell.

[@AllThingsFascinate]

@@2019inuyasha omg truest thing ever!

[@davidcalderwood4131]

So true! Everything. What are those odds?

[@nicr5570]

Probability of looking first: 0%

[@graceoverall]

Am I the only one who finds it wonderfully ironic that Teller writes everything down with Pen, while Pen is the one who Tells us everything? 😋

[@mewxtwo]

I love what you did here

[@JoeBManco]

Everything with a magic act is bait and switch. I am certain they did the name thing deliberately, which is also amazing in its own right.

[@Jukeboxer11]

thatsthejoke.jpg

[@IvanSanada]

Penner and Tell it is

[@Liriq]

Yes

[@KillerXtreme]

Future note, easily fool Penn & Teller with basic electrical engineering, and call it magic.

[@milo9942]

@Nick, well technically all magic is "cheating" in one way or another! have a great day!

[@GuinnessDega]

LOL. Basicaly every magic is cheating

[@insoft_uk]

Everyone with basic electronic engineering knows exactly how the charger trick works

[@webx135]

It's not cheating, it's just real magic.

[@LijenC2357]

said that to those played flat screen tricks but couldnt fool them. its not the tech, its the trick.

[@Toobula]

I love how when he plugs the USB into the block, it's the wrong way and he has to turn it around. Why does this ALWAYS happen????

[@kg4wwn]

Because there are some things even magic can't do.

[@scheimong]

Because the USB port's orientation is in a state of quantum superposition until observed.

[@demonsdown]

It's easy open holes go up closed go down

[@rickyhall7514]

Because it's not USB type c!

[@Demki]

it happens approximately 50% of the time (or less if you are actually paying attention). It's just that you don't care when it works well, and notice the times it fails more.

[@reverse_engineered]

"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." -- Arthur C. Clarke

[@Jonas-qg6jw]

One of the truest sentences of all time

[@eragonbook4]

cant argue. even the simplest electrical switch works

[@nickdejager8873]

Any sufficiently advanced anything is indistinguishable from utter nonsense - Digby's generalization of Clarke's Third Law

[@AbteilungsleiterinBeiAntifaEV]

"Any sufficiently advanced magic is indistinguishable from technology" - Terry Pratchett

[@eragonbook4]

@@AbteilungsleiterinBeiAntifaEV jede weit genug fortgeschrittene form von anti organisationen ist von den organisationen gegen die sie sind nichtmehr zu unterscheiden

[@chrisdudedurian1305]

The real magic is how Penn communicates with Teller telepathically

[@chrisdudedurian1305]

@@thirst0ps316 u know this is a joke right?

[@anubhav987]

@@chrisdudedurian1305 add a emoticon man! I kid you not, i actually used to wonder how teller used to communicate with penn.

[@Vik1919]

@@anubhav987 No need for emoticons. They only make things cringe.

[@furydeath]

@@thirst0ps316 you know thats not the first teller right

[@sammy4418]

Tellerpathically

[@torababdullah7952]

I cannot but admire Penn for how brilliant he is with words. He points out a lot of things without giving away anything to the audience. You gotta hand it to him for this, forget that he knows magic tricks at all :)

[@zoomrc1516]

There is a small battery in the block, when the hand is pressed against the metal prongs it completes the circuit and allows the small batterys just enough to show it charging. I bet if you left it charging it wouldent last that long.

[@FBarbarian]

thought about the same, but still not sure

[@calebjackson5803]

Bojidar Stanchev yeah but didn’t they try that out cause he gave them the charger

[@anthonysauer9618]

Its the plug end in the phone set to otg jumped to the positive terminal to use the otg power draw and and power

[@justweirdout]

I would've thought the same thing, some sort of small electrical current within the block itself, but think about it. For that to be the case, Teller would've felt an electric shock, how else would the circuit be complete? And you'll notice that afterward Teller kept putting it back to his hand and (I assume) the connection didn't go through. And lastly, I'm no electrical engineer but I'm pretty sure that a very small amount of static electricity wouldn't be able to establish that sort of connection, and not only that but I'm fairly certain it's called "Static Electricity" for a reason. It doesn't move, and a connection like that obviously requires a moving current. You can correct me if I'm wrong on that because, like I said, I'm no expert. Anyway, point is, I believe that the trick is something more than just "Batteries in the charging block."

[@ly-yx1rk]

@@justweirdout I think that the simple solution is that he had a battery pack and cleverly hidden terminals on his hand. OR More likely the adapter block is truly a battery pack with a pressure switch where he was holding it. Battery packs a few times larger can fully charge a phone so even a small one could last several minutes

[@grizzlybearr5230]

After every time penn and teller get fooled, I can just see them in the back of the stage at the end of the show holding a gun up to the person that fooled them and saying “tell us how you did that”

[@pomonoli]

Like 2 mobsters, Penn: "Tell us how you're trick is done, I'm not going to ask again! And my little friend here is not much of a talker..." **Teller tapping a baseballbat in his hand**

[@Nicholas-ze5vv]

I know this is a joke, but they pretty much knew that the charging brick was a gimmick device. I'm not actually sure why they gave him the win. Can any engineer go on that show and just confuse Penn and Teller with engineering principles? I don't really understand it lol.

[@pronkb000]

@@Nicholas-ze5vv Bryan expanded on this in another video where he talks about this performance. They apparently fiddled with the charger for a good while (remember, P&T's conversation between them and the producers can go for 20 minutes or more before editing) and could not replicate the charge, at least consistently. They could not find a button, or switch, or pressure-point, or mechanism, to get the thing to reliably charge. I think that has to count as a fool. They shouldn't be expected to break down the circuitry of the cord or whether it's a polymer or phosphate battery, but if they can't even get the thing to work the way Bryan does it, they can't say they've explained the trick.

[@Nicholas-ze5vv]

@@pronkb000 I understand what you're saying, but with that reasoning someone could go on the show with a complex scientific device and "fool" them because they don't understand how it works. You see what I'm saying? What's the difference between that and a partial accelerator when it comes to being fooled? Where's the line between confusing engineering and a magic trick?

[@tomiwaaina5499]

5:05 the shock on Tellers face gets me each time. This man at 70 finds more joy in magic that most teenagers.

[@alexv0714]

holy shit 70? he looks great

[@modelleicher]

To all the people saying "oh it was just a powerbank and the switch is a capacitive touch sensor between the prongs" did you even watch the video? Especially the part from 5:40 and onwards where Penn and Teller try it and can't get it to work. Remember, this is also cut for the show. So in reality they probably took even more time to inspect it. You can see them squeezing the top, pressing the prongs, using tellers hand just as in the routine and it does not turn on. The fact that he handed them the cable right after the routine makes this one really good. Because however it is activated, there is no obvious switch on the prop or he very cleanly turned it off right before handing it to them. I think we all including Penn & Teller knew that a battery inside the charger and a switch somewhere is the most likely solution, but they inspected the prop and couldn't find anything. So its not exactly technology that fooled them but a good routine and clean prop ;)

[@karolszymanski1196]

The answer is a magnet that completed the circuit, and while Bryan rubs the charger after demonstrating the trick to Penn and Teller at 04:55 you can see that he has a metal watch and you can hear a click sound right as he does it. It is actually pretty genius.

[@Nathan-dt2tu]

I'd imagine a magnet in his hand which trips a switch and closes the circuit in the "powerbank". He's holding Teller's hand in his left hand when he does it.

[@money_mavericks]

At 4:54 he makes a really weird movement, that could be deactivating the "powerbank".

[@DerFliegendeMocca]

i agree with the others. just because they cant get it to work, it doesnt mean, that it is not a power bank with a hidden switch. It could be time based, there could be a sequence in which a button is pressed so it doesnt power on, there could be a magnetic switch, there even could be a wifi or bluetooth solution and some guy in the audience that controlls it. The other routines are good, but not there to fool them. it is the device, and how clever it is set up.

[@wizardsuth]

He might even have swapped the prop charger with a regular charger just before the hand-off. They could examine it all they please and never get it to work.

[@ESPirits87]

3:07 i was more impressed by Teller writing without looking.

[@ItsCottonie]

Right?! Whenever he does that I’m mind blown 😂

[@jamesfair9751]

Have you ever tried it. It’s not that hard to do lol

[@ItsCottonie]

Janes Fair I did when I was in high school cause I seen other students doing it. My sentences trailed off the lines so bad 😂

[@hiway19891]

@@ItsCottonie You're the only person who really needs to look at them so it's fine so long as you can understand

[@htcmlcrip]

I rarely look when I write (or type)... Guess is just habbit. As this guy above mentioned, it may go off the line but in notebook you write to yourself it doesn't matter really.

[@punjabiprincess908]

Just done some googling and heres who he's worked for: AT&T ADT Audi Baylor University Bighorn Golf Club BMW Buick Charter Chevrolet Cinnamon Toast Crunch Coffee-mate Comcast Comic Con Dell DirecTV Dish Network Epson ESPN Flexon Ford FOX Sports University Frigidaire GMC Gridsmart Hearst History Channel Home Depot HP Jack Daniels LEGO LifeLock Maxi National WWII Museum NCAA Nescafé Nestlé Nomad Olympus Paramount Home Entertainment PGA America Playstation Yo momma Playtex Professional Communications RE/MAX Ryder Cup Samuel Adams Security Choice Skybridge Capital Snickers Sony Suzuki Total Rewards Toyota Toys R Us Transitions Drivewear Typhoon Texas Universal Studios Viagra Volkswagen Wall Street Week Weekend Festival

[@KingBat-vs7qw]

Dude you got too much time on your hands lol

[@ProChaos916]

Yo momma haha

[@koalabear9967]

successful man

[@moviemaker2011z]

The fact its in order makes me feel good.

[@blufilo5919]

Viagra, yo momma. Haha well played

[@ty88]

Dude the narration bit is killer! Using that voice to tell audience members what to do in the present tense then just staring at them waiting to do it is HILARIOUS. And the tape player music is the cherry on top.

[@davidfrance2915]

Beyond the skill of the trick, this was definitely a presentation. I was just happy watching it from beginning to end. Teller's face was just aglow with excitement, and that's how I felt. You made this magic trick engaging, entertaining, and very enjoyable. Thank you for the energy and enthusiasm. Wonderful personality and character. Well deserved.

[@Piisuke]

To me, the best part is when Teller just looks like he saw magic happen before his eyes.

[@relaxwith_aj8798]

I was watching this post and then my neighbor came and we watched it together. He said this post really changed his life and it touched my heart. My village people are so grateful. Am proud to say ❤️ cool post wow thanks for sharing ❤️

[@philliplewis1586]

The look of absolute and pure delight on Teller's face at 5:05 just makes me feel warm and happy inside.

[@nickgirilovitch5428]

It's called acting you farm animal.

[@philliplewis1586]

@@nickgirilovitch5428 Any particular reason you felt like being a twat with this reply or is that just the way you are all the time?

[@nickgirilovitch5428]

I am like that all the time when it comes to nonsense. If a person thinks he sees genuine emotions on a TV screen I let them know in a hurtful way because it hurts my heart knowing people fall for this drivel. If I made you feel bad, I sincerely am happy to know that, because I'd rather be a twat than an idiot.

[@realm3164]

@@nickgirilovitch5428 go see a therapist. What you have is called depression and it's serious.

[@trulybrady8839]

Nick God fuck you

[@godbelow]

Even for a magician, USB doesn't go in right the first time. 4:12

[@JTF544]

i think that was slight misdirection as he tries to setup the magnet on his ring to make the charge

[@ShovelShovel]

It the USB superposition

[@i_have_a_coat]

at least he didnt get the mythical 3 sided ones i usually get. Try to plug in, doesnt go, flip it. Try to plug in, doesnt go, flip it. Try to plug in, goes in.

[@savage101.]

@@JTF544 he's not wearing a ring..

[@mezotech5419]

@@JTF544 Even if he was using a magnet, he still isn't causing induction which he'd need to generate any power from a built-in motor. If anything, the brick probably has some DC capacitance built into it and the circuit closes when the two prongs touch Teller's hand.

[@Fant]

I love when magic and humor are mixed together. They work so well hand in hand. And even though I'm a skeptical I like to just see magic tricks happening and the slow pull apart of the cable ends was truly amazing.

[@dragonmb7]

Honestly, it’s just kind of impressive he did this in sync with the music.

[@KaitouKaiju]

Music probably helps with the timing

[@quickhakker]

Rehearsal

[@matthewryan4844]

They have sound engineers with executive button pressing skills to stop one sound effect and start another at the right cue

[@meltedmarshdaddy]

The music wasn't playing during the recording it was added in afterwards by the editors.

[@DMTHOTH]

Do you know the name of the music?

[@thomaspalazzolo5902]

I love how this trick started off as an obvious loop and rope type trick but then evolved into a much more complex trick with the wrap around and the charge! Well done!

[@samo4648]

Not that complex tbh. Probably the lamest trick I've seen on fool us. Props to him tho. Pretty balsy move to put a battery in a charging block and do some rope tricks for Penn and teller

[@pranavps851]

@@samo4648 And it worked for him somehow

[@tk20channel]

How incredibly unique of an act! The way he used his voice, made it into an infomercial...and had good rope magic going on throughout with a modern item. Just a great act.

[@stoozey]

How incredibly unique of a comment! The way you said exactly was Penn said... but rephrased it onto here. Just a great comment.

[@nightwing8756]

if im guessing correctly I would say when it charged the phone there was a mechanism inside the wall plug in that when a current is completed from the two prongs a small battery releases some energy to, well, charge the phone

[@andrewcharles459]

But it also needs a mechanism to render it inoperable when he hands it over for examination. Probably a magnetic switch of some sort.

[@nightwing8756]

@@andrewcharles459 when he hands it over though they're messing around with it some more and it still seems to be working, so he might have just let them have it, knowing that they couldn't take apart the phone charger. (to be honest though I have no idea)

[@nightwing8756]

@@marcosolo6491 ok but keep in mind this was done close to 4 years ago, a lot of stuff has changed since then.

[@PocketC00KIE]

He totally voiced some of the Jackbox games, didn't he

[@theblackbaron4119]

I'm not completely sure. He sounds really close though.

[@defectivepikachu4582]

holy shit he probably did

[@MohammedDanishAmber]

I got surprised when he did game rating voice over. *rateg Pegi 13*

[@RahulRoy-tc3lt]

@@MohammedDanishAmber *rated pg 13

[@MrThelegodudes]

@@RahulRoy-tc3lt He didn't mean PG13; PEGI is the game rating system we have in Europe.

[@TheSchlippsters]

At the end of the night pen and teller are talking... “Did we really get fooled by a rope trick?”

[@borecko1]

they didn't get fooled by the rope trick, but the charging trick

[@fantabaz1]

That gag about hating your own voice when you're on hold is genius!! Well played sir!

[@ttanmana5905]

I knew almost instantly, the moment he press the prongs on T’s hand and I just love it that P&T could be fooled by one of the most basic electronic circuits design principle. There’s probably a pre-charged capacitor (1 - 2 A, big enough to hold the charge for modern day smartphone) inside the charger to hold the electrical charges enough for 5 - 10 seconds while he performed in front of P&T. When he pressed the prongs on T’s hand, the circuit was closed which allowed the current/charges stored on capacitor to quickly dispense to the phone. Once P acknowledged that his phone was indeed charged and no longer focus on his phone (this requires timing and distraction by his presentation), then, he lifted the prongs charger from T’s hand. At this point, the charges stored in that capacitor has been completely dispensed and no longer works again. That’s when he turn in the charger to T for inspection.

[@simontuchman5181]

It's actually probably a npn transistor connected to the capacitor or small battery. The gate of the transistor is connected to one prong, the + of the battery is connected to the other prong, the + is also connected to the phone, the - is connected to the drain of the transistor, and the phone charger - is connected to the source of the transistor.

[@josepeixoto3384]

@@simontuchman5181 would that only work 2 times? because that is a must.

[@simontuchman5181]

@@josepeixoto3384 you could also probably fit an IR receiver in there, and use a transmitter to tell the reciever when to turn the circuit on and off. I don't know what the specifics of the circuit are, I just have a general idea.

[@jimv1983]

I was thinking something similar but I think it was a charger that had a battery instead. It wouldn't have to be that big of a battery just to charge for a few seconds.

[@AnantMall]

Eli5 pls?

[@jamesfair9751]

Battery in the wall plug. Plug prongs closes circuit when touched to skin. 4:54 rubbed across magnet in watch to turn off inner switch so it won’t work for them. You can hear it click as he rubs it across the watch.

[@Setras]

The clicking sound was a magnet from his right hand jumping towards the watch on his left hand. Magnet does not simply "turn the thing off" with a crazy loud clicking noise. It just activates the reed switch in the power plug to make it operable and deactivates it when you remove the magnet.

[@yusufahmed2233]

Hats off to u man

[@RetroPillowcase]

Interesting

[@ShovelingJedi]

One of the smoothest presentations in comedy magic...

[@therealeazy-l8335]

I like how he justifies being fooled by just saying he doesnt know how electronics work

[@Tomwithnonumbers]

I reckon they have an idea what's going on, but not 100% and they figure the guy would be great for their show.

[@MsLouisez]

Does the average population of a magic show know how it works though..

[@mikeanthony773]

Yeah. They liked him and his shtick and they wanted him on.

[@aov1509]

My guess is a capacitor. Enough for lighting up the phone a couple of times. might be wrong though lol

[@notmyregret]

If you have no experience with electronics, how would you expect something like a battery inside the charger? I thought of that as soon as he handed it to them... Hell, you can hide a USB in the cable too, that's why it's not recommended to use chargers you find on the ground.

[@johnweber4504]

4:13 even magicians can’t get it right first try

[@roninsdog261]

When it comes to You Tube and Fool Us videos, just like gaming videos, political videos and even Astronomy videos, the real experts aren't IN the video, they are in the comments section and you will ALWAYS find an abundance of them.

[@will9603]

Isthis Better bwahahahaha you've made my day

[@darrendjaya7144]

Ikr lmao

[@bradleybaum9000]

Isthis Better your sarcasm made me laugh!

[@Mo_Ketchups]

Isthis Better ... This a perfect boilerplate template that’s appropriate for almost every video on YT. 😄

[@IrvingIV]

Gaming videos often do have experts in the comments.

[@bouncyballblue]

It's both pleasing and infuriating to immediately understand the phone trick but watch Penn and Teller be baffled by a simple battery.

[@alias9731]

I guess they knew about the battery, but they couldn't activate the mechanism, when they had the cable in their hands.

[@josepeixoto3384]

@@alias9731 of course no big deal, it is rigged to only work 2 times, when it gets inverted upside down; as most have figured , a very simple circuit and battery inside the white housing. edit: oh, and small and powerful magnets to unite the ends of those cords by magnetism; same way as he does with the pencil(of course, it is actually 2 pieces of a "pencil" stuck together by 2 magnets, seeming to go across the 100 dollar bill,but one of the 2 pieces staying behind it); not sure of that, i just think it is a possibility,any other ideas?

[@richardtickler8555]

@@josepeixoto3384 transistor my friend. the tongues arent at the same potential and when you touch both a transistor opens and the battery connects to the phone. no magnets and springs etc. needed

[@tonystolz4982]

Capacitor that discharges after two "pushes" on the plug.

[@JohnnyBfromOKC]

Fooled by old age!

[@titmusspaultpaul5]

I've read a lot of the comments and am amazed that every single one i read was positive ( i went through about 20 in a row). That has never happened with any other act on Penn & Teller and i must have seen more than 40 of these videos. Very well done.

[@lasitharathuwithana1413]

word

[@YipYapYoup]

Lol this just means he filters them. What gives it away is the high amount of likes on every comment, it means they sit there for a very long time because not enough new comments stay up, and thus they gather more likes.

[@InsaneIncreaser]

This is the magician's channel. He deletes the negative comments.

[@titmusspaultpaul5]

@@InsaneIncreaser thats a good thing... lol... magic is fun and positive, not negative and i love reading these good comments.

[@titmusspaultpaul5]

@@YipYapYoup I'm sort of glad, some of the negative comments are just ridiculous and pointless.... they are being negative for the sake of it. Leave the honest ones like yours and the positive ones, thats all I need at least.

[@AzafTazarden]

I love how he keeps looking at the camera all the time because it's a commercial

[@TheRealBeatMaster]

The most magical thing would've been if he plugged in the USB first try

[@esta7763]

You plugged the USB in on the first try?! Stop right there! You fooled us.

[@MileyonDisney]

You have a magnetic personality and a whole battery of tricks.

[@AlexPBenton]

Miley onDisney You mean an Electric personality?

[@jazq3]

@@AlexPBenton You didn't get it. Try again.

[@AlexPBenton]

Korax You think I missed the joke? Maybe YOU missed MY joke

[@olliec1243]

@@AlexPBenton your joke was shit

[@greenspringvalley]

It's a kid's trick like cup and balls, already known so ok to reveal. Magnet ropes sold at department stores for $2 because I bought one years ago. A battery in the line is like too obvious to be kept as a big secret...not revealing anything here.

[@chronovac]

When Penn arrived home he immediately took a hammer to his charging block

[@lisahoshowsky4251]

I loved this! The presentation was so fun! This is what I love about this show, you don’t need to fool them to have an amazing and magical act, fooling is just a bonus🙌

[@HypercopeEmia]

okay everyone talks about the charging part but i have no idea how he made and unmade the cable

[@Martinspire]

Yeah its still a good routine

[@Awesomenoob25]

Both cables had the ends, he just hid the one of the big one by hiding it with his hand, and hid the smaller one at first using slight of hand and just revealing it. When he rotates the cable at 2:59, he is not actually turning the cable at all. He did the same thing in reverse at 3:45, but the camera cut to a different angle when he did it as it was too obvious when looking at it on camera, so they hid it to make it less obvious to the viewer

[@MrLycantree]

@@Awesomenoob25 yes that is classic rope trcky just like Pen stated, but how the chargers works? That is the foolish part

[@valk128]

@@MrLycantree You just put a small battery in the charger and leave the charging circuit open, and when you close the circuit (by shorting the plug with your hand in this case) the phone stats charging.

[@JohnMichaelHintonM]

Best one in the episode...and not just because you fooled them!!

[@titmusspaultpaul5]

Agreed. Thoroughly entertaining. Fooled everyone and was funny to boot, but in no way cheesy.

[@maliceinwonderland4079]

Were you also fooled Mr. Hinton?

[@JohnMichaelHintonM]

I was on his creative team...so maybe? :)

[@matthewalvarez1305]

Even a magician can’t plug a USB in first try 4:13

[@whateverppl1229]

i didn't care for it and they where fooled from an idea that wasn't even his own... a battery...

[@antonnym214]

Mr. Saint, you are a national treasure. I've seen thousands of acts, but yours rises to the top in terms of amazement and entertainment. THOROUGHLY entertaining, start to finish! I laughed so hard! Never a dull moment. Bless you, and all good wishes for 2020 and the future!

[@wilsonrawlin8547]

Same here. Great work.

[@animationspace8550]

I love how he announced himself with his voice actor skills

[@acw2582]

I love the slight chuckle when he plugged the usb in backwards lol

[@superalkadias]

Enjoyed his presentation skills more than the trick itself.

[@ezntertainment3601]

The best part of the trick is the fact that he knew he’d have an iPhone

[@researchandbuild1751]

A bigger trick was being compatible to charge an iphone...they have special circuitry

[@murphy54000]

@@researchandbuild1751 No, they don't.

[@robertgibson1156]

I'm gonna blow your minds, but if you see Penn and Teller in person, and you go up to shake their hands after, Teller will just talk to you. Thank you for coming to the show like a human. That's the magic.

[@arthurvandelay4225]

Freezeframe at 4:49 - the position of the magician hand leads me to believe there is a magnetic switch inside the "charger". And, the magnet is probably concealed under the magician's watch otherwise Teller would have seen or felt it.

[@czarzenana5125]

Nothing that complicated, the pins of the plug act as a touch on/off switch. Your skin is a bit conductive, so you do not need a mechanical switch. Look around you, there are touch-switches on a lot of devices.

[@dio52]

It doesn't even need to conduct a charge through the skin. The terminals merely need to be attached to a pressure switch inside the battery.

[@W4rn1ngy0u]

People keep fcking saying it's just touching the pins but they seem to forget Teller TRIES this himself and it doesn't work, there's something else to it.

[@SomeoneElseEntirely]

At 4:56 he switches off the device with a tap against his watch (magnet)

[@cloudygames5067]

Nice catch. Even looks like he does a double take to make sure he touches his watch to deactivate

[@Flop_Studios]

I bet it was a specially made charging head with a small battery and a circuit that when your hand connects the two prongs of the charger it completes a circuit and turns on the charging circuit with the battery. As for the rope magic that's just very good sleight of hand. Very well done!

[@zevvalentine]

Penn and Teller tried that. If I were to guess, I would say there's a magnetic reed switch in it and most likely the magnet was in his watch and when he brought it close enough (touching Teller) it flipped the switch

[@Flop_Studios]

@@zevvalentine That can't be it because the charger was still working after he left Penn and Teller alone with it.

[@CrossRoadsOfTime]

more or less yes that's probably what he did. you likely couldn't plug that thing into an actual wall outlet as it was specialy made to do that.

[@Flop_Studios]

@@CrossRoadsOfTime true

[@RetroPillowcase]

@@Flop_Studios they didn’t show it work after he gave it to them.

[@milton3563]

The best thing about this performance is, he actuallybleft the prop with penn & teller.

[@MrGermandeutsch]

I wouldn't skip Ads if they were THIS entertaining!

[@UFOhunter4711]

I don't care how he did it, it was fun to see, worked and was good enough for P&T

[@theblackbaron4119]

It's actually pretty obvious. The charger plug is battery powered, closing the circuit by connecting the prongs with Teller's hand.

[@thegreatchaotix]

I love Teller... His faces are so funny and he act like a little kid totally surprised

[@moviemaker2011z]

Magic is starting to get interesting again. This guy made it fantastic.

[@CodingCorvus]

I can almost imagine him doing this on street, making people's chargers shorter and then over the top long and just leave them with the over the top long charger.

[@Gruesome420]

This is an absolutely awesome preformance!!!!! The way the routine just all ties together seamlessly is amazing.

[@isaacsgarage931]

My guess, the charger is fitted with a small Li-Po battery and when the circuit is complete between the prongs, like when its touched to skin even though the capacitance is high, it trips a relay allows current to flow to the phone. The prongs on the charger would not work if plugged into the wall, instead they are like the prongs on a multi meter checking for resistance or continuity. Great stuff regardless the method.

[@Terabiel]

Penn tested that. They pushed on the prongs and nothing happened.

[@isaacsgarage931]

@@Terabiel It could be made to only work once and need resetting, or the small battery ran out. Just a theory.

[@shirkanesi]

I just suggest an ESP8266 in there. And anotherone on the magician somewhere so it only works when he is close (and probably presses a button)

[@quickhakker]

It might be a case of it acting like a passthrough style system. Plugged into the wall it charges the phone until phone reports full, then it charges the battery, so the block acta like a portable charger and actual charger

[@norbertfleck812]

@@quickhakker I doubt the "charger" would still work if connected to mains. It's just the housing with a completely different interior.

[@littlezeppy3266]

They way he was able to make that an already really good magic trick into a show that completely represented who he is as a person is truly special

[@yellalot101]

I always love Teller's expression when he is really awed by the magic and doesn't know how it's done.

[@cupajoe99]

At first, I was kind of shocked that - "Okay, if you can get a tech gizmo that P&T can't figure out... that's all it takes to constitute a fool?" But also - the history of magic, as P&T themselves frequently point out - was the showcasing of new technology that the audiences didn't quite understand, and this trick lines up 100% with that kind of ideal. So I'm sure that P&T appreciate that - that it's not like they were duped by the end of a trick they knew most of. If they don't understand something, it fools them - and if they don't want to be fooled, it's their job to be on top of what little gizmos can do. And I think they accept that with positivity.

[@TheJacklikesvideos]

The people who "fool" them get opening acts at their show. There was nothing special or confusing to them about any part of the trick, but he's a good performer and they want to hire him.

[@kuurro5769]

It’s better than rope tricks, realize it charged his phone. That means the electrical wire was connected even after cutting and adding the ends back on.

[@dicebomb2045]

If you look closely he never takes his left hand off the wire so it was never 'cut"

[@thetilenglishtaste9913]

yeah it's some ridiculous slight where he always has his hands at the connectors

[@RCassinello]

Ask yourself which is more likely: He magically fused the ends of two cut-off plugs onto a new bit of wire... Or the two plugs were already on and hidden?

[@htcmlcrip]

On the other hand I have a snap on end of a cable (with magnet), so called 360 degrees bits. Basically is snap on plug, outer ring connects to negative, middle pin to positive, snaps to the cable with help of magnetic conductive outer ring, cable comes separately. But in this trick since cable can be examined it isn't the case. He switched the cable or something.

[@diamondflaw]

@@dicebomb2045 Also he "cuts off" the "loop" from the spool from the back and takes his time for a reason.

[@eriknestaas2270]

There were probably small batteries in the charging brick, and a switch that gets closed/activated when there is lower electrical resistance between the prongs (human skin has a lower electrical resistance than air, so when it touches human skin, the switch gets closed/activated and it charges the phone). This is just a guess of course.

[@IamNotU]

except that Penn and Teller tried that and couldn't get it to work

[@eriknestaas2270]

@@IamNotU Oh, so it didn't work when they tried? Then maybe the charger is activated by a magnet activated switch, and the guy had a magnet hidden in his hand that he would touch against the charger to activate it.

[@nicx7785]

@@eriknestaas2270 You dont need contact for a reed switch to work. But also listen at 4:54 when it clicks near his arm.

[@TheCarbonMirror]

One of the best magic presentations I've ever seen. Amazing! Best part is as an engineer, I can think of a few ways you could make an unplugged cord look like it's charging a phone, but I totally can't figure out all the stuff you did the with cables. Excellent idea!

[@andrewburner4379]

The cable was the easy part. You use sleight of hand and old school rope tricks. I'm trying to figure out what kind of modification he did to trick the phone into 'charging'. I have a few ideas, mostly involving capacitors or some inherent property of an iphone.

[@boshamburger123]

The part when he hands them the charger and is like yeah you can look it, their faces instantly change and are pretty blown away.

[@david203]

Which was very strange, because they know that the final rope is always honest even if some of the other pieces might be rigged.

[@robrazzano9168]

The part where the phone starts charging is not complicated. There's a battery in the brick and touching the ends either completes the circuit through Teller's body or presses a button inside the brick that completes the circuit.The part where the cable changes lengths is what gets me.

[@kayram7962]

Rob Razzano probably part of the circuit cuts off at the metal rods and teller’s hands serves as a bridge

[@kayram7962]

Israel Hoffman i see what you mean but what im saying is i dont think his hand completed the batterie’s curcuit but a circuit that activated a bridge or something which yeah basically a relay

[@atinity6749]

He had the cord ready, notice how he "cut" the cord behind the thingy and rest was just slight of hand, hiding the ends.

[@markp44288]

Besides the magic being AWESOME, you being annoyed with yourself (but wait, there's more! eyeroll) was hysterical!!! Great act. All around just perfect.

[@suspicioussalad5578]

Step 1: Go on Penn and Teller Step 2: Throw a Phone Charger onto the stage. Step 3: Charge a phone. Step 4: Fool Speed Run WR

[@gkttlr1066]

Every sufficiently advanced piece of technology is indistinguishable from magic.

[@HOCKEYTOG]

There's a continuity error on the edit at 3.44, watch the hands and the "loop" closely from the frame before the cut and the frame after.

[@vibes5805]

I love how the show lets all the magicians upload it on their own channels

[@derivalz5062]

a cute battery in the charger adapter and completes the circuit when it touches together + a sleight of hand... good job

[@MrFiver1111]

He probably did the best for the show. I'm guessing USB power lines are connected to the data lines with it's resistor paralel to the charge and then the plug terminals are on a capacitive switch, no idea on the ropes trick though lol

[@RetroPillowcase]

He said it’s not a circuit

[@CheshireMoonBand]

Killer variation on the rope trick. And you beat them because they didn't know tech. This has had me laughing all week. Very cool.

[@adeelanjum7943]

how?

[@Tapionski]

@@adeelanjum7943 most likely the plug has a small battery inside.

[@whitneyy_spears7007]

It is the same way you charge from a lemon, water , anything, just creating a small potential that shows on the phone but it takes a century to become full

[@sonamadinolf6096]

They may not "know tech"... but he handed them the whole thing, so unless he switched plugs, they would have seen the button/switch on the plug. In fact, we even see them checking for it. So if it was a battery in the plug, then the on/off had to be a remote, controlled by his toes (since his hands were both occupied during the process)

[@Marius-tt9pz]

They wouldn't have seen a button/switch because the prongs ARE the switch. This device works very similarly to the way those touch lamps (you could turn them on/off or cycle through brightness levels by touching anywhere on the metal base) that were popular in the 90's worked. This touch switch simply turned on charging from a small battery inside the "plug". Of course, you would never get any usable charge out of it, but the small battery would be enough to trigger the phones charging state.

[@radicalxedward8047]

5:54 I was pretty sure Penn was mouthing “he didn’t I had to push the ...” but he could have been saying he didn’t push the button based on his later comments.

[@imdeadserious6102]

I get that he added a switch and battery in the charger cube so capacitive touch would let a phone charge but I don't know how the cord was able to be made a continuous one before he handed it over.

[@mikem9497]

So we're just going to ignore the fact he pulled a pencil through a 100 dollar bill

[@guntrikscustom9389]

It was stuck to the back of the $100 bill, he simply pulled it off the bill.

[@htcmlcrip]

Ohh the pen bill trick would had no chance in fooling them. Is simple trick

[@nssherlock4547]

Yes ,we are

[@kifflom5362]

Its very simple. Penn and teller done it before

[@IQzminus2]

Visually stunning, extreme easy to pull off. Looks great on camera and in person up close. If you want to get into magic I would recommend it as one of your first tricks. Just look for a magic shop, either locally or online, there are more of them around you then you think if you just look for them (but not the places that just sell kids magic kits), and I can guarantee they have the trick for you with everything you need including instructions. Relatively cheap tick as well. And people love that trick. It gets some great reactions. It just looks great

[@RickReasonnz]

Awesome modern take on a classic, and what a unique performance!

[@Liam40]

Rope trick fooled me, the charger did not.

[@CarbonatedTurtle]

You and literally everyone who watched this video.

[@user-wq9mw2xz3j]

@@CarbonatedTurtle well duh. Tricks that actually require some skill and smooth handling like rope trick fools people, the charging is just about being educated or not. Anybody who knows basics of electricity would be able to guess how the charging works. The cable is also obvious that he is holding on to shorter cords on his left hand, but the trick is still cool and not 100% see through

[@timm8998]

The rope trick is a well known trick, so i think most people do know how it is done.

[@iitstre_4550]

Idk how many times I’ve seen this now. But it’s just as mind-blowing every time.

[@sargefifth6068]

guy...amazing performance, great hooks, and amazing trick...loved it. Thank you for sharing

[@Caseyuptobat]

I love how Penn disguised his admittance to not understanding the mechanism of the prop as "I don't understand how iPhones work."

[@GeodesicBruh]

Because it’s clear that he, just like you, doesn’t know much about electronics, otherwise he’d been able to figure out the trick.

[@nirmalyamukherjee6669]

0:59 look carefully there is an angular cut in the pencil, which went through the note

[@LeonBlade]

I love that callback at the end of the trick to the call on hold. So funny to see it come back around.

[@xx0t4kuxx99]

Idk why I always worry about Penn coming off as sarcastic at first.

[@brianclark5981]

He had something in his sleeve he rubbed it on before he gave it to them to de-magnetise the function of the charger box. (4:52)

[@magic_jannik]

This guy came on stage and rocked it!

[@wayneyadams]

What a brilliant idea, taking an inane infomercial and turning it into a comedic magic act. It is so enjoyable that I have watched it several times, and truthfully, the magic is secondary to the presentation. What I mean is that this would be a fun act even without the magic.

[@DreadlyKnight]

Until he gave them the charger, I was assuming the ends were all magnetically attached

[@aglove275]

I think they are magnetic props but then he switches the fake cord with the last cord

[@TheNonsenseGuy]

Im pretty sure its just a long cable and a short cable and he holds the ends in such way that he can switch between them without you noticing

[@vincentjohnflorio]

Congratulations! Really dig the showmanship.

[@coryhallett9907]

Just watched for the 3rd time, and still BLOWN AWAY!

[@YszapHun]

I am a guy from eastern Europe. I've heard of Penn & Teller before but I've only just discovered this show, and this show is amazing.

[@isaacbenmoussa4454]

People saying the hand completes the circuit is practical but I think it's simpler. The prongs themselves are just a button that turns on the charger in the small box when pressure is applied.

[@RetroPillowcase]

Teller would have felt that retracted pins

[@Iridiumchaos]

You, sir, made me a kid again! I was smiling and laughing all the way!

[@guilhermetorresj]

As an electrical engineer, I can think of at least 5 different ways to make this charger work as shown and, without opening it up, it would be very hard to simply guess the method. Great trick, great story to tell the audience!

[@theresaastley9339]

GREAT PRESENTATION !!!! GREAT SHOWMANSHIP !!!!! WHAT A GREAT MAGIC TRICK !!!!