BWIN MOBILE POKER - $500 BONUS
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BWIN INTRODUCTION
As you’d expect from one of the poker industry leaders, when the recent mobile gaming boom started Bwin was quick to hop on-board, introducing an iPhone app as well as an exciting Android poker app, which is the subject of this review. This new app allows you to compete against PC-based and mobile users who form the massive PartyPoker player pool, so it should go without saying that finding some action all around the clock is never a problem, especially since the app focuses on the most popular variants of the game.
DOWNLOAD & WELOME BONUS
To begin your Bwin mobile poker adventure, you have to get a hold of the necessary software first. Don’t worry though, as the entire installation process is extremely simple – all you have to do is visit register at Bwin and follow the download instructions.
Once the app has been properly installed, you’ll have to either provide your Bwin log-in information to use the service or sign up for a new account. Unfortunately, the current company policy prohibits customers from a multitude of countries from playing poker at the site. Even worse, this rather overzealous effort to comply with various local gambling laws means you won’t even be able to access play money games if your current area of residence has been blocked.
Fortunately, the vast majority of players should have no problems with completing the registration process and will be able to take advantage of Bwin’s generous welcome bonus of up to $500, which is a 100% match on your first deposit.
Once the app has been properly installed, you’ll have to either provide your Bwin log-in information to use the service or sign up for a new account. Unfortunately, the current company policy prohibits customers from a multitude of countries from playing poker at the site. Even worse, this rather overzealous effort to comply with various local gambling laws means you won’t even be able to access play money games if your current area of residence has been blocked.
Fortunately, the vast majority of players should have no problems with completing the registration process and will be able to take advantage of Bwin’s generous welcome bonus of up to $500, which is a 100% match on your first deposit.
INTERFACE & FEATURES
Once logged in to the Android app, you will be moved to a well-designed lobby, which utilizes the trademark black-and-gold Bwin visual design and allows you to choose one out of three tabs: Play for Real, Play for Fun and Preview.
The Preview is something you won’t see in most other mobile poker apps and will guide you through a pre-recorded hand of Texas Hold’em, allowing you to familiarize yourself with the interface and the general flow of the game. While this tutorial is extremely basic and won’t be very helpful if you don’t know much about the rules, it should be enough to give the intermediate players some idea of the key differences between a desktop and a mobile-based poker client.
Play for Fun pits you against live opponents, but you won’t be risking any real money here as all the chips are free in this mode. Even if you’re a veteran of the game and have used other mobile poker apps in the past, I’d seriously advise you to spend some time learning the ropes here, as there’s probably nothing as frustrating as making the wrong play due to an interface-related misunderstanding.
Fortunately, once you get the hang of the game, such mistakes are going to be extremely rare, if not downright impossible. The all-important function buttons work pretty much like in the best PC-based clients, but are large enough to allow you to choose the right option every time, without fail. Unfortunately, the same can’t really be said about the settings menu, which for some reason comes with a set of smaller buttons, which might be considerably harder to click if you are still getting used to your mobile – but in the end, this proves to be a rather negligible drawback as you won’t be spending a lot of time tinkering with these settings anyway.
While the Play for Fun mode may provide you with its share of excitement, the Play for Real mode is where the heart of this app really is. Here, you will compete against other players for real money, and while Texas Hold’em cash games are your only option with Bwin’s Android entry, the general consensus is that only a few poker variants are capable of providing the player with as many thrills as this one.
Fortunately, the selection of Hold’em tables available includes no-limit, pot-limit and fixed-limit and you can choose whether you want to play heads-up or 6-max/9-max/10-max. The stakes range from $0.01/$0.02 to $25/$50, which is rather impressive for a mobile app. Unfortunately, like in other mobile apps, once you click the Play button, you will be automatically seated at a table, making table selection a rather difficult process.
The app now also offers Sit-and-Go tournaments and a fast fold poker variant called FastForward that allows users to enjoy many more hands per session.
The Preview is something you won’t see in most other mobile poker apps and will guide you through a pre-recorded hand of Texas Hold’em, allowing you to familiarize yourself with the interface and the general flow of the game. While this tutorial is extremely basic and won’t be very helpful if you don’t know much about the rules, it should be enough to give the intermediate players some idea of the key differences between a desktop and a mobile-based poker client.
Play for Fun pits you against live opponents, but you won’t be risking any real money here as all the chips are free in this mode. Even if you’re a veteran of the game and have used other mobile poker apps in the past, I’d seriously advise you to spend some time learning the ropes here, as there’s probably nothing as frustrating as making the wrong play due to an interface-related misunderstanding.
Fortunately, once you get the hang of the game, such mistakes are going to be extremely rare, if not downright impossible. The all-important function buttons work pretty much like in the best PC-based clients, but are large enough to allow you to choose the right option every time, without fail. Unfortunately, the same can’t really be said about the settings menu, which for some reason comes with a set of smaller buttons, which might be considerably harder to click if you are still getting used to your mobile – but in the end, this proves to be a rather negligible drawback as you won’t be spending a lot of time tinkering with these settings anyway.
While the Play for Fun mode may provide you with its share of excitement, the Play for Real mode is where the heart of this app really is. Here, you will compete against other players for real money, and while Texas Hold’em cash games are your only option with Bwin’s Android entry, the general consensus is that only a few poker variants are capable of providing the player with as many thrills as this one.
Fortunately, the selection of Hold’em tables available includes no-limit, pot-limit and fixed-limit and you can choose whether you want to play heads-up or 6-max/9-max/10-max. The stakes range from $0.01/$0.02 to $25/$50, which is rather impressive for a mobile app. Unfortunately, like in other mobile apps, once you click the Play button, you will be automatically seated at a table, making table selection a rather difficult process.
The app now also offers Sit-and-Go tournaments and a fast fold poker variant called FastForward that allows users to enjoy many more hands per session.
TABLE MODE & COMPETITION
As you’ve probably already guessed, the Bwin Android app does a great job in terms of bringing the visuals of the desktop-based client to a mobile device. Simply put, the app looks stunning – and better yet, runs extremely smooth even on older hardware. While you won’t experience any slowdowns here, you might become irritated by the sounds signaling each action at the table - they do a great job of keeping you on your toes, but might feel tiresome after a while.
Fortunately, the “Vibrate when silent” function makes this a rather moot point and the game is otherwise flawless in terms of presentation. I’d also like to expand on the issue of functionality, which was briefly touched upon above – it’s really hard not to appreciate the fact that this app feels almost like a PC-based piece of software without being clunky or uncomfortable to use. Obviously, you won’t be able to multi-table here, but otherwise all the buttons retain their functions and the interface comes complete with a four-color deck of cards, which is an important addition in a mobile app even when the standard design allows you to easily distinguish between spades and clubs or hearts and diamonds.
In the end, the only issue I’ve had with this app during the few hours of rather rigorous testing was that the sliders used to determine the size of your bet or the amount of money you will bring to the table didn’t feel as responsive as I’d like them to. Nevertheless, the manipulators were large enough to mitigate this problem to some extent, so in the end it simply became a matter of getting used to how they work.
Last, but certainly not least, the competition isn’t exactly top notch to say the least and most games aren’t very tight even on higher stakes, which makes this app an excellent choice if you’re still learning poker or if you’re simply looking to extract more value. Obviously, you won’t have the advantage of being able to carefully select the tables you play at, but let’s be fair here - this kind of solution is bound to attract even more fish, especially with a mobile-based app.
Fortunately, the “Vibrate when silent” function makes this a rather moot point and the game is otherwise flawless in terms of presentation. I’d also like to expand on the issue of functionality, which was briefly touched upon above – it’s really hard not to appreciate the fact that this app feels almost like a PC-based piece of software without being clunky or uncomfortable to use. Obviously, you won’t be able to multi-table here, but otherwise all the buttons retain their functions and the interface comes complete with a four-color deck of cards, which is an important addition in a mobile app even when the standard design allows you to easily distinguish between spades and clubs or hearts and diamonds.
In the end, the only issue I’ve had with this app during the few hours of rather rigorous testing was that the sliders used to determine the size of your bet or the amount of money you will bring to the table didn’t feel as responsive as I’d like them to. Nevertheless, the manipulators were large enough to mitigate this problem to some extent, so in the end it simply became a matter of getting used to how they work.
Last, but certainly not least, the competition isn’t exactly top notch to say the least and most games aren’t very tight even on higher stakes, which makes this app an excellent choice if you’re still learning poker or if you’re simply looking to extract more value. Obviously, you won’t have the advantage of being able to carefully select the tables you play at, but let’s be fair here - this kind of solution is bound to attract even more fish, especially with a mobile-based app.
VERDICT
While it’s true that Bwin’s Android poker app has its share of rather minor flaws, it’s also true that those flaws are commonly shared by all the similar apps currently available on the market. Regrettably, the technology to bring you all the functionality of a desktop-based client without any kind of compromise simply isn’t there yet, but fortunately the creators of the Bwin mobile poker app recognized this fact, bringing you a focused piece of software that never feels too clunky or overcomplicated for your cell phone.
Combined with a stylish visual package and an excellent player pool, this makes Bwin’s new entry on the mobile poker market a perfect choice for newcomers and seasoned cash game enthusiasts alike. Now that the app supports turbo poker and Sit & Go tournaments, then trust me when I say that very few of its counterparts manage to achieve the same level of quality.
Combined with a stylish visual package and an excellent player pool, this makes Bwin’s new entry on the mobile poker market a perfect choice for newcomers and seasoned cash game enthusiasts alike. Now that the app supports turbo poker and Sit & Go tournaments, then trust me when I say that very few of its counterparts manage to achieve the same level of quality.
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