Online REVIEW
Online Poker Room Reviews
The information below is a summary of our individual poker roomreviews.
If you would like a full review on a particular room simply click on the name of that room.
| Review | PlayerTraffic | PlayerQuality | Software | CustomerSupport | Overall |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | 7.5 | 9 | 8 | 86% | |
| 10 | 7.5 | 9.5 | 9 | 88% | |
| 9 | 8 | 9 | 8.5 | 87% | |
| 8.5 | 8.5 | 8.5 | 9 | 87% | |
| 9 | 8.5 | 8 | 8 | 85% | |
| 7.5 | 8.5 | 8 | 9 | 84% | |
| 8 | 8 | 8 | 7.5 | 79% |
Poker Stars Review
Rating Summary
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History
Poker Stars opened for play money beta testing September 12th 2001 and began
offering real money games in December 2001. As the leading tournament
online poker room it has produced players who won their way to become
the 2003 (Chris Moneymaker) and 2004 (Greg Raymer) World Series of
Poker Main Event Champions.
Player Traffic 10/10
Up to 15,000 cash game players and 100,000 tournament players can be found at the Poker Stars tables
during peak periods. This makes Poker Stars by far the largest online
poker room for both cash game and tournament poker.
Quality of Players 7.5/10
In previous years Poker Stars has had a reputation of having very tough players at any games or
limits. As the player numbers has grown the competition has decreased
to a level that is about average compared to other rooms as a whole.
Games Offered
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Limit
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Pot
Limit |
No
Limit |
Scheduled
Tournaments |
Sit’n'go
Tournaments |
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| Texas Hold’em |
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| Omaha |
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| Omaha Hi/Lo |
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| 7 Card Stud |
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| 7 Card Stud Hi/Lo |
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| Razz |
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| 5 Card Draw |
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| 2-7 Triple Draw |
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| H.O.R.S.E. |
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| H.O.S.E. |
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Software 9.5/10
Since opening with an extended
beta testing stage, Poker Stars has had the most stable and functional software of all the online poker
rooms. Even with tournament sizes of more than a thousand people the
software runs quickly and smoothly.
The statistics provided to
players are comprehensive. The lobby lists tables with average pot
size, players per flop and hands per hour. Statistics offered to seated
players include flop seen by position, pots won with showdown and pots
won without showdown. In tournaments players can also see their current
position and the average chip stack sizes of the players remaining.
Bonuses and Promotions 8/10
Poker Stars offers a first deposit bonus of $100 up to $600 and there is an
occasional re-load bonus, typically 20% up to $120.
Players are able to earn
Frequent Player Points (FPP) by playing real money games that can used
to enter tournaments or make purchases in the FPP Store. A VIP Club is
offered to all players with a variety of membership levels based on the
amount of Frequent Player Points earned every month.
Customer Support 9/10
Customer support is provided 24 hours a day, 7 days a week by e-mail only. Responses are received in
minutes for the majority of enquiries and the quality of responses is
excellent. Poker Stars has some of the most competent customer support
representatives in the business.
Bodog Poker Review
Rating Summary
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History
Bodog.com, founded by
flamboyant billionaire Calvin Ayre, has
operated an online sports book and casino since 1995. In 2004 the Bodog
Poker room opened for business and with a great marketing campaign by
the owner has seen the site grow by leaps and bounds.
Player Traffic 7/10
During peak times there can be
up to 4,000 real money and 20,000
tournament players found on the tables at Bodog poker.
Quality of Players 8.5/10
Due to the fact Bodog Poker has
many of its sports and casino
players venture to the poker tables the level of play is mostly below
average no matter the stakes being played.
Games Offered
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Limit
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Pot
Limit |
No
Limit |
Scheduled
Tournaments |
Sit’n'go
Tournaments |
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| Texas Hold’em |
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| Omaha |
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| Omaha Hi/Lo |
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| 5 Card Stud |
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| 7 Card Stud |
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| 7 Card Stud Hi/Lo |
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Software 8/10
While the graphics aren’t the
flashiest around the software at Bodog
Poker is fast and stable. The lobby displays the average pot size and
percentage of players who see the flop for each table and your
statistics while playing are available at each table. Players can play
up to a maximum of 3 tables at the same time with ease due to the
“Picture in Picture” table view.
Bonuses and Promotions 9/10
The bonuses and promotions
offered by Bodog Poker are excellent.
Bodog Poker offers an initial deposit bonus of 110% with a maximum of
$550 (Bonus Code: REVIEWPR).
Players can earn points
through the Bodog Player Point program which can used as entry into
certain tournaments and occasionally a points to cash promotion.
Additionally there is Tournament Leader board promotion where players
can earn special prizes determined by their multi-table tournament
performances for the week, month and year.
Customer Support 9/10
Bodog Poker customer support is
handled by e-mail or by phone. The
e-mail support may take a couple of hours to reply but the responses
are clear and of high quality.
Visit Bodog Poker
Full Tilt Poker Review
Rating Summary
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History
Full Tilt Poker opened for
business in July 2004 and with an
aggressive marketing campaign has gradually grown to be one of the
leading online poker rooms. Full Tilt sponsors some of the biggest
names in poker including Phil Ivey, Howard Lederer and Phil Gordon, who
can sometimes be seen playing at the tables.
Player Traffic 9/10
During peak times there can be
up to 60,000 tournament and 10,000
cash game players found at the Full Tilt Poker real money tables. The
cash games consist mainly of Limit or No-Limit Texas Hold’em tables.
Quality of Players 8/10
Historically even at lower
limits the players at Full Tilt Poker
tended to be quite a bit tighter than those found at most other online
poker rooms. Although these tight players were not necessarily be good
players it did make it much more difficulty to win than rooms with
looser players. However as the room has grown in size the competition
has gotten considerably easier, especially in the Omaha games.
Games Offered
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Limit
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Pot
Limit |
No
Limit |
Scheduled
Tournaments |
Sit’n'go
Tournaments |
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| Texas Hold’em |
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| Omaha |
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| Omaha Hi/Lo |
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| 7 Card Stud |
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| 7 Card Stud Hi/Lo |
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| Razz |
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| HORSE* |
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*HORSE is a fixed limit mixed
game. Each letter stands for a
different game, with the game changing each time the level changes in a
tournament.
The 5 games are:
H – Texas Hold’em
O – Omaha
Hi/Lo – Eight or better
R – Razz
S – Seven
Card Stud High
E – Seven Card Stud Hi/Lo – Eight
or better
Software 9/10
The software at Full Tilt Poker
is excellent with no discernable
bugs or problems. Available for both MacIntosh and Windows platforms
the software runs smoothly, quickly and is easy to navigate. While the
cartoonish graphics may not be to everyone’s tastes they do provide a
welcome change from the staid visuals found at most other poker rooms.
Statistics provided in the lobby to assist table selection are average
pot size, percent of players seeing the flop and hands per hour.
Bonuses and Promotions 9/10
Full Tilt Poker has one of the
best sign-up bonuses found at online
poker rooms – 100% up to $600 by either visiting from this site or
using the sign up code BONUSRPR.
Every few months
there are additional 50% deposit bonuses offered. Players can also earn
Full Tilt Points through real money play which can be redeemed for
special points tournaments or merchandise.
Customer Support 8.5/10
Full Tilt Poker offers 24 hour
support via e-mail only. The response
time is fast, usually within half an hour, and the quality of responses
is very high.
Visit Full Tilt Poker
Titan Poker Review
Rating Summary
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History
Recently
opened in 2005, Titan Poker is
part of the rapidly expanding iPoker network of internet poker rooms
that use Playtech software.
Player Traffic 8.5/10
There can be up to approximately 5,000
cash game and 25,000 tournament players found at the Titan Poker tables
during peak hours. As part of the iPoker network you can find yourself
playing against players from other affiliated sites such as Noble Poker.
Quality of Players 8.5/10
The opposition is of a similar standard to
that found at Party Poker especially at the lower limits where numerous
weaker players can be found. At higher limits there is mostly
short-handed play where as expected the level of competition can be
tough.
Games Offered
|
Limit
|
Pot
Limit |
No
Limit |
Scheduled
Tournaments |
Sit’n'go
Tournaments |
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| Texas Hold’em |
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| Omaha |
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| Omaha Hi/Lo |
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| 7 Card Stud |
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| 5 Card Stud |
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Software 8.5/10
The software supplied by Playtech and used
by Titan Poker and the other poker rooms on the iPoker network is
available in numerous languages including English, German, French,
Italian and Spanish. The software is visually appealing and the
functionality is good with no noticeable bugs although the game-play
can be a bit slow at times. Statistics displayed in the lobby include
average pot size, players seeing the flop percentage and hands per
hour.
Bonuses and Promotions 9/10
Titan Poker offers numerous bonuses and
promotions to new and existing players. There is a sign-up bonus of 50%
up to $500 maximum and there are unique bonuses for players that can
win multiple, 5 to 6 depending on the bonus, sit and go tournaments in
a row. And finally there are bad beat bonuses and a Titan Poker VIP
Club that rewards frequent players with freeroll tournament entries and
loyalty cash bonuses.
Customer Support 9/10
Support is available via live chat, e-mail
and telephone with toll-free numbers available for UK based players.
Most inquiries are answered very quickly and the quality of support is
high.
Party Poker Review
Summary
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History
Party Poker opened in 2001 and is
credited by many as playing a large role in the creation of the online
poker boom with its aggressive marketing. Party Poker is currently
listed on the London Stock Exchange (PRTY – PartyGaming PLC).
Player Traffic 9/10
Once the largest online poker
room with a reported 5 million users,
Party Poker has been overtaken by Poker Stars and Full Tilt Poker.
However there are still 10,000 cash players and 60,000 tournament
players during the busiest times. Due to the number of players from all
over the globe a game can generally be found quickly no matter the time
of day.
Quality of Players 8.5/10
Many of the players are
beginners or casual players, especially at
the lower levels. As you play higher level games they do get tougher as
expected however you can still find many opportunities to play players
of a lower standard.
Games Offered
|
Limit
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Pot
Limit |
No
Limit |
Scheduled
Tournaments |
Sit’n'go
Tournaments |
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| Texas Hold’em |
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| Omaha |
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| Omaha Hi/Lo |
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| 7 Card Stud |
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| 7 Card Stud Hi/Lo |
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Software 8/10
The software at Party Poker is
fast and reasonably reliable. There
can be some glitches with the waiting list to get into games and other
minor annoyances such as noises and graphics but overall no major
problems at all. Tables are re-sizable and hand histories are now also
stored on the hard drive. Players can play up to 10 tables
simultaneously and the software includes statistics showing the average
pot size for each table in its lobby section, which gives a pointer to
finding the juicier games.
Bonuses and Promotions 9/10
Party Poker
is an excellent site
for ongoing bonuses. Usually every month or two you will be entitled to
receive a 20% bonus for any extra money deposited. They also have a
players club where players can earn points that they can trade in for
merchandise.
Customer Support 8/10
Party Poker claims to respond
within 24 hours to emailed questions
although we have found that they are usually much quicker than that
(they often respond within the hour). For immediate support there is 7
day, 24 hour telephone support available which is toll free from many
countries.
Sometimes there can be
miscommunication as the support is based in
India but Party Poker does value their loyal customers highly and
generally provide good support and do their best to help.
Everest Poker Review
Rating Summary
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History
Everest Poker is medium sized
poker room that is targeted towards
European and Asian players. It was the first online poker room with
multi-lingual support. Currently 16 different languages are supported
including Spanish, French, German, Dutch, Swedish, Japanese and many
others.
Player Traffic 8/10
During peak times there can be
up to 5,000 cash game players and
10,000 tournament players found at the Everest poker tables. The most
trafficked times are during evening hours for European players.
Quality of Players 8/10
The level of play is slightly
worse to average compared to other
online poker rooms. The lower limits have many bad players and a soft
table is usually easy to find. As the limits increase the quality of
play and number of tough opponents increases considerably.
Games Offered
|
Limit
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Pot
Limit |
No
Limit |
Scheduled
Tournaments |
Sit’n'go
Tournaments |
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| Texas Hold’em |
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Software 8/10
The software is available in 16
languages with Texas Hold’em being
the only poker game currently being offered. The graphics are nothing
spectacular but not bad either with speed of play about average. Everest Poker
basically has good and stable
software – not as good as some poker rooms but not as bad as others
either. The lobby statistics shown are average pot size, hands per hour
and percentage of players seeing the flop. Also included in the poker
room client software is a tutorial to help beginners get started.
Bonuses and Promotions 8/10
Everest Poker has a $100 bonus
available for new players. Also
available is the Summit
Points Program which awards
points
for play in real money cash games and tournaments. These points can be
used to enter real money tournaments, Everest Poker merchandise or even
Points for Points
poker games and tournaments.
Customer Support 7.5/10
Support is only available by
e-mail. While support is generally
helpful they are on occasions slow to respond.
Mansion Poker Review
Rating Summary
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History
Mansion Poker opened in 2004 as an
independent poker room with software developed in-house. In 2005 along
with the Fox network, Mansion Poker produced 26 episodes of the “Poker
Dome Challenge” which was broadcast in the US and internationally. In
2007 Mansion Poker moved to the iPoker network and Playtech software.
Player Traffic 8.5/10
There can be up to
approximately 5,000 cash game and 25,000
tournament players found at the Mansion Poker tables during peak hours.
As part of the iPoker network you can find yourself playing against
players from other affiliated sites such as Noble Poker.
Quality of Players 8.5/10
The opposition is of a similar
standard to that found at Party Poker
especially at the lower limits where numerous weaker players can be
found. At higher limits there is mostly short-handed play where as
expected the level of competition can be tough.
Games Offered
|
Limit
|
Pot
Limit |
No
Limit |
Scheduled
Tournaments |
Sit’n'go
Tournaments |
|
| Texas Hold’em |
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| Omaha |
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| Omaha Hi/Lo |
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| 7 Card Stud |
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| 5 Card Stud |
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Software 8.5/10
The software supplied by
Playtech and used by Mansion Poker and the other poker rooms on the
iPoker network is available in numerous languages including English,
German, French, Italian and Spanish. The software is visually appealing
and the functionality is good with no noticeable bugs although the
game-play can be a bit slow at times. Statistics displayed in the lobby
include average pot size, players seeing the flop percentage and hands
per hour.
Bonuses and Promotions 9/10
Mansion Poker offer an initial deposit bonus of
100% up to $500. There are a variety of other promotions including a $1
million monthly tournament, double point days and freerolls with the
chance to win tickets to Tottenham Hotspur’s games.
Club Mansion is the loyalty
program opened by Mansion Poker in 2009
which involves earning points that can be converted to cash or
merchandise.
Customer Support 9/10
Mansion Poker offer telephone
support, toll-free from many places,
in several countries and multiple languages. There is also e-mail
support that usually responds within an hour.
