There are a lot of things about gambling online which are awesome. It is hard to beat the convenience of simply turning on your computer, opening up your web browser, logging into your favorite online casino, and playing a game of poker or baccarat.
At the same time, if you have ever played in a brick-and-mortar casino, you know that there are some aspects of online gambling which can never measure up to the real in-person experience. Online, you do not get to enjoy the atmosphere of a real casino. You never have a chance to see any of the people that you are playing against, or to interact with the dealer. In fact, there may not even be a dealer; quite often, the games that you are playing are being managed entirely by a computer.
For this reason, it can sometimes get to feel as if you are playing nothing more than a Windows game. While there is not anything wrong with that, you may find yourself feeling nostalgic and longing for an experience which is a little more reminiscent of traditional offline gambling.
Live Dealer Casinos: The Perfect Fusion of Online and Offline Gambling
Live, Web-Cam Dealers for Mybookie
A lot of people want to know how to see this live in action without depositing. Well just visit the Mybookie casino and register an account. It is totally FREE to do so. You can then visit the live dealer section of the casino and watch the action live your self. Obviously if you want to play you will have to make a deposit. You can not play for fake money on the live dealer games, but you can watch.
Technology has really moved along since online gambling first got its start. This is good news for you because it means that you can now participate in live dealer games. These games are offered by what is known as “live dealer casinos.”
What is a live dealer game? This is a form of online gambling which offers much of the appeal of gambling in a traditional brick-and-mortar casino. You are still gambling from your computer at home, but you are playing with a real dealer whom you can actually see and interact with directly.
How Live Dealer Games Work
Live roulette – Also from Mybookie
Live dealer games make use of live streaming technology. The dealer you see on camera is located in a physical setting somewhere, most commonly a studio environment. It is not uncommon for these live streams to transmit from actual off-line casinos, but a studio is better because the noise levels can be controlled, and there is no distracting activity in the backdrop.
Many people prefer live dealer games over traditional online casino games because they feel that there is more inherent trust in working with an actual human dealer as opposed to a computer system. Most online casinos which offer live dealer games also go out of their way to employ extremely attractive dealers, so this is another draw (of course, it can also be a major distraction).
Some, but not all, live dealer games also allow you and the other players to interact directly with each other. If you have a webcam, you can stream your own image across the web. This can be very useful if you are for example a poker player who wins by reading the facial expressions and gestures of the other players. The social aspect of this interaction can be enjoyable as well.
In the grand scheme of things, live casinos are still a fairly recent invention in the world of online gambling. For this reason, you will notice that the selection of live casinos and live dealer games is presently restricted compared to the selection of general online casinos. Still, you will find that you can play many of your favorite games with live dealers online. Popular live dealer games include roulette, poker, and Sic Bo.
We have an entire section on our site dedicated to helping you find the best live casinos. You will notice however at this time that we are presently only recommending BetOnline. This is because (again) there are not that many live casinos out there yet, and there are really only a few that are worth considering. So far, BetOnline is the only one to really knock our socks off, but we are researching and hope to add more to this category soon.
Still, if you want to search around on your own, or if you decide to check back when we have added more casinos to this category, you may find it useful to you know some important criteria to consider when you are shopping around for the best live casino. You can find our recommended selection criteria below.
Requirements for Selecting the Best Live Casinos
- Software
- Game Selection
- Reputation
- Deposit and withdrawal procedures
To some extent, software is something that you always need to think about when you are selecting an online casino to play at. But it is more important when we are talking about live casinos than it is when we are talking about old-fashioned online gambling. Remember, live streaming requires more from a technical point of view than playing a game with simple graphics.
So first of all, you need to make sure that you have a fast and reliable internet connection. Assuming you have that aspect squared away, you need to be sure that the live casino software is also reliable and fast. You would not want to be dealing with glitches and freezes in the middle of a live game.
At that rate, you do not want to choose a casino that runs on software which is too demanding for your system. Also consider that some programs are designed only for use on a specific type of device. So if you are planning to play on your mobile device, you need to make sure that the live casino software is designed to work on your mobile, and does not require that you be playing on a desktop or laptop system.
You are not going to find a huge selection of games on a live casino at this point in time. This is largely because the technical demands of running a live casino are quite arduous compared to what it takes to run old-fashioned online games. So before you join any live casino site, make sure that they are offering games which you are excited to play. Right now, BetOnline offers live roulette, live blackjack, and live craps. There really is something for everyone here—craps and blackjack both have a low house edge and offer you a chance to use your skills to win consistently. Roulette is a great option if you just want to have fun testing your luck.
This is another area where selecting a live casino can be a bit of a challenge compared to picking a standard online casino. There are a lot of well-established online casinos in existence, but not so many live casinos which have such a strong, long-standing reputation. This is again because live dealer games are relatively new.
So a lot of the live casinos that you will stumble across while searching online are run by fairly new companies that do not yet have a lot of customers or reviews. This makes it difficult to evaluate whether they are trustworthy. This is why our own list right now is so short.
We trust BetOnline because they are a well-established online casino and sportsbook which has been around for quite some time and with which we have first-hand experience. Hopefully more of our favorite online casinos will soon be offering live dealer games, but until then we are just happy to see that BetOnline is making this transition into the future of online gambling.
One of the most vital criteria in evaluating any online casino that you are thinking about joining is the procedures and requirements for depositing and withdrawing funds from your account. So naturally, this is something you will also want to check into in detail if you are going to sign up for an account on a live casino.
While you are researching live casinos, be sure to find answers to the following questions:
- What payment methods does the company accept for deposits and withdrawals?
- How do you initiate a deposit or withdrawal?
- How long does it take between submitting a withdrawal request and receiving your funds?
- Is there a minimum or maximum amount of money that you withdraw at any one time?
- Are there any fees for withdrawing money from your account?
- How many withdrawals are you permitted to make within a given time period?
- What is the minimum and maximum deposit amount?
- What currencies are accepted?
- What are the rules and restrictions for withdrawals if you choose to accept a bonus or promotion? What kind of turnover requirement do you need to meet to withdraw your money?
You should pay especially close attention to the terms and conditions surrounding bonuses and withdrawals. Many casinos make it quite difficult to access your money if you accept a bonus. The friendlier the terms are, the more likely it is that you will find the company easy and pleasant to deal with.
You should always expect some kind of rollover. What you are willing to deal with is up to you; the most important thing really is just to make sure that you fully understand what you are getting yourself into.
Typically when it comes to online gambling, the stakes are something you do not really need to worry about, even if you are not a high roller. It generally costs a great deal less to operate an online casino than it does a traditional brick-and-mortar casino. This makes it possible for online casinos to offer games with very low buy-ins.
Because of the demanding technical requirements of running a live casino, associated overhead costs are higher. Like casinos need to make up for these additional expenses somehow, and typically they are going to do that by setting higher buy-in requirements for their games. So try and figure out what the average buy-in is and whether you can afford it before you sign up for an account on a live casino website.
Your security is something that you should always be concerned about any time you sign up for an account at any type of online casino. That is true of live casinos as well. What kinds of encryption protocols protect your private data? Are your funds segregated from company funds? Is the live casino regulated by any financial authority? The more protocols and procedures that are put in place to protect your privacy, the better.
One last consideration (but certainly not least) is customer service. This is something that I always emphasize because it is so easy to overlook its importance. But you would not hand your money to just anyone in the street, right? If you are giving your money to someone, you need to be able to trust them to look out for your best interests. You need to know that they are going to be there for you if you have a question or concern.
You can find out about the customer service of live casinos in two ways. The first is to look up customer reviews. The second is to simply test the quality of service yourself by submitting a question via e-mail or live chat. You can also try calling up the live casino directly on the telephone and speaking to an agent. The best casinos will answer your questions without trying to give you a hard-sell on opening an account or making a deposit.
Conclusion: Choosing a Live Casino is Much like Choosing Any Online Casino—With a Few Special Considerations
For the most part, you can see that choosing a high-quality and trustworthy live casino is much like picking any other online casino to join. Many of the concerns are the same; you need flexibility and friendly terms for depositing and withdrawing your money, stellar customer service, and security for your account.
But there are a few criteria which are specific to live casinos as well; you need to focus on affordable stakes, compatible technical requirements, a reasonable game selection, and a strong reputation more than you would if you were shopping around for an old-fashioned online casino.
For now, we strongly suggest you stick with Mybookie and BetOnline. These are by far the best and most reputable live casinos we have found yet. But be sure to check back regularly as we update our list with more top-notch live casinos!
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