It’s never been easier to win big on slot machines without having to even set foot in a casino. The reason is the same as why it is now simpler to do practically anything on earth: the ubiquitous smartphone.
In the past 15 years, these pieces of technology have totally revolutionised the way we live our lives. Playing mobile slots on an app is as easy as online banking or ordering a takeaway using the same technology. More slot providers are now utilising this concept with many now having compatible mobile sites like Wink Slots mobile or mobile gaming apps.
Winning money using a mobile phone would have been a crazy thought 20 years ago. The primitive digital technology had no redeeming, interactive features and a phone was strictly for voice calls.
All that changed with the first Nokia smartphones and then the introduction of the Apple iPhone. Previously unprecedented amounts of memory and full internet usage gave a mobile experience like no other which came before it.
As smartphone use then exploded towards the end of the 2000s, app developers quickly understood our attachment to them. Our addiction to the technology was even parroted in adverts for them: remember ‘There’s an app for that’?
When Apple launched its App Store in 2008, it did so with 500 titles. Today, there are almost two million apps just waiting to be downloaded, with 700,000 more available to Android users.
The most popular kinds of apps on the market are, without question, gaming apps. There are some truly incredible – and let’s face it, slightly unnerving – statistics out there about gaming on smartphones:
- A quarter of all Apple and a fifth of all Android app downloads are games.
- Gaming makes up 43% of smartphone use.
- More than 2.2 billion people around the world play games regularly on their phone.
Online slots are no different to titles like PUBG Mobile or Candy Crush in that they are extremely popular. They tick all the boxes for their users, initially because they can be accessed quickly and conveniently.
It is all about pulling that virtual lever and watching the wheels spin. It is about players hoping that the combination the machine settles on will be one that will win them some money.
Smartphone technology makes this a much more relaxing and personal experience. While joining and visiting a regular casino is time-consuming, online gaming can be done from the comfort of the sofa.
The online slots also offer quick games which can be completed while waiting for dinner to cook. There are free versions too, acting as a taster before the player decides whether to upgrade to the full version.
And it’s not just one game, either. There are thousands of different variants on the central theme, each with their own pros and cons.
Usability and availability, though, are the keys to the success of online slot machines:
- They offer a range of games that even the biggest casino in Sin City can’t compete with.
- There’s no waiting around for machines to become free.
- The e-casino is absolutely limitless in its scope and reach.
Unlike walking off the Strip and straight into a game in a vast gaming hall, there are other advantages too. Most online gambling companies will offer incentives and rewards for new customers.
Crucially, it’s also easier to pay for your wagers online – and the chances of a good pay out are higher too.
App developers have kept a very close eye on the habits of online slots players. This allows them to optimise their products, so they’re perfectly formed for the blissfully unaware gambler.
The result is a fine-tuned experience, shaped around what the provider knows the gambler wants.
Companies are now tapping into this and the number of online slots games looks as though it will keep increasing. Established players in the arena of in-person gambling are entering the online fray in tandem with their physical locations.
They’re being joined by strictly digital-only operations which are occasionally arms of huge, other businesses, like Sky.
The apps are popular with novice gamblers who might not necessarily want to set foot in a casino. They might not know what they were doing and feel out of place or reluctant to ask for help.
An app also offers many more benefits than a visit to a physical location, too. If a gambler is on a winning streak, they can pause their game and come back to it later.
That split-second decision of whether to claim the winnings or keep going must be made at a physical location. On an app, the user can take that moment to stop and think.
This ‘gamification’ allows users to make incremental gains in their status as they win more and more points. This brings financial and other rewards later on; all they have to do to keep winning, is keep playing.
The ban on the use of credit cards to pay for online betting is a safeguard in place for gamblers. It’s also easier to set stake limits online, which helps prevent gamblers getting into trouble too. However, for a lot of gamblers, the stakes are safe, and the fun hasn’t stopped yet. The number of mobile gamers shows there’s a long way to go before that happens.
