The Difference Between Mobile and Online Casinos

As technology evolves and mobile phones become more sophisticated, it’s easy to see that the future of the gambling business lies in the world of mobile casinos, but just how different is a mobile casino from an online one?

Gambling has seen huge leaps and bounds over the past few decades as it transitioned from land-based casinos to online platforms, and now placing a bet on a horse, playing slots or dealing a hand of cards is now literally available at your finger tips.

Even though online gambling has only taken off in the past few years, could it be over thrown by the rise of mobile casino gambling? What differences can players expect between online and mobile play?

Accessible Platform Play

Top mobile casinos:

• Betway Mobile Casino.

This mobile casino is great for its wide selection of casino games on the go, plus it offers a number of sports betting options too.

 • All Slots Mobile Casino.

This mobile casino comes with the Spin3/Microgaming mobile casino games library with 21 top casino games.

• Golden Riviera Mobile Casino.

With its HTML5 platform, this makes for great gaming on the go, no matter your location.

 • Winner Casino.

Offering both a host of casino games online and via mobile, Winner is a good place to compare the mobile and online benefits.

 • Slotland Mobile Casino.

This is one of the few mobile casinos that is open to those based in the US, not only that, but Slotland’s unique adaptation of mobile games will have players coming back for more.

Online casinos have certainly revolutionized the gambling world, allowing players to enjoy casino games from the comfort of their home and without having to get all dressed up for the casino.

When you want to play online, you log into your account via a website and play games over a good and secure net connection. Mobile casinos function a little differently, in that you can avoid collecting a stack of web addresses on your phone.

Mobile play requires the player to download an app onto their phone, which usually manifests as an icon on the home screen. This can give the player instant access to their games.

Online casinos maintain the advantage that there are no data charges to consider when playing, although for those with an unlimited data pack on their phones are able to enjoy more casino game play.

But beyond the streaming downloads, it’s time to address the elephant in the room that is the supported platforms. It goes without saying that a computer and a smartphones use different operating systems.

Those who use either a Mac or a Linux operating system will be familiar with the limitation of many online casinos, in that they are designed with a Window’s user in mind. There are other things that need to be considered, like an up-to-date flash player or enough RAM, and so on.

Mobile casinos are a little simpler, since there are a number of mobile games that run on Android, Mac OS X Mobile, Windows 7 Mobile, and Blackberry OS as well. Apart from having Java installed and a data or wireless connection, downloading an app comes ready to play.

Gambling on the Go

A laptop is kind of portable, but it certainly doesn’t come with the convenience of a smartphone or a tablet computer. It’s much easier to whip out a phone and log in for a game of poker in the waiting room or on the bus, rather than having to boot up a laptop.

The portable differences are clear. Not to mention that if you have a shared PC at home, that you will probably have to fight for access, whereas your phone is your own device, and stays in your pocket.

Sometimes, you might want a little flutter in your lunch break, but the computers at work are blocked, fortunately with a smartphone, you take control of what you can access and engage in a little mobile betting.

Interactive Touch

Online gambling has brought a new, fresh angle to traditional casino games. It’s given the player a closer sense of interactivity with the game.

However, in the case of mobile casinos, this takes the interactivity one step further. Smartphones and tablets have the added advantage of using touch screen technology.

Although, online games offer a more developed and sophisticated game play when compared with a mobile phone, since the current controls on a mobile can still be considered as limited. This means that certain games may be simplified.

Since mobile gaming requires that an individual app per game is downloaded onto the phone, this means that the variety of games available for mobile play is also limited when compared to the online games.

Sociable Gaming

The rise in smartphone usage and mobile casinos, coupled with the popularity of social media has given birth to a new form of gaming – social gaming.

Social gaming, most particularly social casinos, have become a huge hit both online and on mobile phones. These games are essentially “just-for-fun”, so no money is risked like in traditional casinos.

The rise of social gambling on both mobiles and on online platformshas popularized casino games, making them into something that is both socially accepted and fun.

There are a growing number of apps in the mobile social casino arena, where players still get to experience the betting and gambling thrill without actually risking losing money. You can think of it as the virtual equivalent of playing poker for matchsticks.

However, social gaming can act like a gateway to real money-play casino games. Since more money is invested in money-for-pay casinos, most apps will have better quality games on offer.

Getting the gambling bug via social gaming could lure many potential players into the real money-gaming market, which means that mobile casino developers will certainly see a boom in the near future.

Online gambling might be seeing a surge of eager players, they may be surpassed by their rivals in mobile gaming apps. Big scale operators are already investing in mobile operations, which will sure be the future of the gaming market.

While online gambling might not offer the interactivity and the mobility benefits of its portable equivalent, it still has the advantage of carrying a wider variety of games and a more sophisticated platform.

But, as mobile phones and tablets evolve, we can expect to see a rise in top quality interactive games to play on the go, that marry the advantages of classic online games with the benefits of social media.

The future is here – and it’s a casino in your pocket.