For many people, gambling is a thrilling pastime allowing them to feel the rush of adrenaline and potentially pocket a nice prize with a bit of luck. Some players love placing a few bets on roulette or playing a blackjack hand or two every once in while but simply lack the time and energy to visit a landbased casino. Others have sufficient time but there are no gambling venues in their area to visit.
The best alternative for such people is to play at an online casino and have hundreds of games available at their fingertips. Interactive gambling has grown to become a gargantuan industry as presently there are hundreds of web-based casinos accepting registrations from a vast number of countries.
This broad range of available choices has both its advantages and downsides. While there is a wide range of options, not all interactive casinos are created equal and novices often have no idea what online casino to pick and play at. This article offers advice on what to look for when picking an online casino and might spare inexperienced players lots of nerves and hassles in the future.
Types of Online Casinos to Choose from
Online casinos can be grouped into two major categories depending on the way players can access and enjoy the games. Continue reading to learn more.
Instant Play Casinos
Some online gambling operators offer Instant Play meaning that registered members can access their websites and gaming collections directly via the internet browser of their desktop computers. In this case, there is no need to download and install any additional software on one’s device in order to load the games. Instant Play online casinos have one massive advantage to offer – players are enabled to sign into their accounts and access the casino from any device they like, public or personal.
But the advantages of Instant Play casinos do not end there. Another positive is that one will not have to waste hard drive space and there will be no additional software to clutter their system. Instant Play games are also highly regarded for their quick loading times, not to mention they are designed in such a way so as to be compatible with most widespread operating systems, including Linux, Windows, and Macintosh.
Therefore, such casinos are able to reach a much larger player base. Some Instant Play casinos are still based on the Flash technology, which is why players are recommended to install an up-to-date version of the Adobe Flash Player on their computers. Others have already transitioned from Flash to HTML5. All in all, players should ensure they update their internet browsers frequently so that the Instant Play games can run as seamlessly as possible.
Casinos with Downloadable Clients
Other online casinos rely on a native client, which is a piece of software players need to download (for free) and install on their desktop computers to gain access to the casino’s entire platform, including gaming selection, cashier, promotional section, and customer support. Once installed, the software will connect to the operator running the online casino and players will be prompted to register their accounts directly from the client.
When online casinos first emerged back in the mid 1990s, all of them operated exclusively via downloadable clients, which is to be explained with the slower internet speed at the time. These were the prototypes of an online casino and as such, were given a good head-start since all offered games had to be downloaded. Because of this, download casinos, especially some of the oldest ones, still offer a wider range of games in comparison to their Instant Play cousins, which emerged on the interactive gambling scene later on. Some of the earliest casino games are still unavailable in Flash format so the wider choice of games to pick from is one of the biggest positives of using downloadable casino clients.
What some players consider a disadvantage in this case is that sometimes the downloadable software is rather sizeable and takes up a lot of disk space. What is more, the client increases in size as more and more games are released and added to the casino’s gaming library – this is something which in many cases happens on a monthly basis. The operating system one’s desktop computer is running on may also prove to be an issue, the reason being some downloadable online casinos are designed for Windows OS exclusively. Needless to say, this works to the disadvantage of Mac and Linux users.
There is a silver lining though as more and more online casinos are available in both formats, so it is possible for players to pick the option that suits them the most.