A quarter of a century ago, online gambling did not even exist, but fast forward to the last decade, and it has taken the whole world by storm. The first iPhone was released by the Apple Company in 2007, which by now in the lightning fast growing world of mobile phone technology must also seem like an eternity ago. As of this writing, in 2015, in order for your iPhone to be considered current and be assured of maximum access to your favorite slots games, you need iPhone 6 or 6+. While Versions 5s and 5c are still available, Versions 3, 4, and 4s are already obsolete. But when you see all that iPhone 6 can do, you won’t want these older models anymore. IPhone 6 is much more than just a mobile phone; it is like having a mini-computer in your pocket wherever you are.
Whether you need to send an email, check in with your boss, research a specific fact, or choose a restaurant or movie, or if everything else can wait except playing slots, your iPhone is ready when you are. These amazing portable devices not only support play on more slot games than you thought possible, but thanks to greatly improved mobile technology, the graphics and sounds are now on a par with what you will find on your computer.
Play for Free or for Real Money—it’s Your Choice
You have plenty of flexibility in playing slots on your iPhone. You can play for play money or for real money, your choice. If you are new to a particular casino, or to mobile gambling in general, we recommend that you start with play money and ease into real money games. Also, if a new game has caught your fancy, it makes a lot of sense to try it out in practice mode initially so you can get the feel of it and see if you like it. Then, if it is not your cup of tea, no harm done. But if you love the game, you can easily switch to real money. If you need to reload your account first, no problem. You can do that with your iPhone, too.
Getting Started
All of the slots you can play on your iPhone can be played on your computer, the only difference being that these games have also been optimized for mobile play. Not every slot game on your computer is offered in a mobile version, but those that are tend to be the casino’s most popular games, including at least few progressive slots.
If your mobile device is an iPhone rather than a model offered by a competitor, as a slot player, you should consider yourself especially lucky. Many owners of these other devices are scratching their heads because even though they would love to play their favorite slots on the go, they cannot find a suitable app that will work satisfactorily on their mobile device. Or the online casino they are playing at does not support play on their device or only on a handful of games. However, with a current version of the iPhone at your fingertips, you will never have this problem. That is because Apple iOS devices were the first mobile phones and tablets to be marketed with online gambling capability. As a result, every casino that offers any kind of a mobile platform has the software to allow play on iPhones. Furthermore, the casinos know that their iPhone offerings must be continually expanded and improved on to reflect the latest advances in mobile gaming technology, including being fully compatible with the newest iPhones. Otherwise, savvy slot players will take their business elsewhere.
Where you could run into problems is in actually getting the games to run on your iPhone. The Apple Company, unlike its competitors, produces mobile devices that run on HTML 5 instead of a flash animation platform. This means, in effect, that their iPhones (and iPads, too) are incompatible with flash casinos, so, in all likelihood, downloading the app (if not for real money, for free play) is the only way to access the games.
Assuming downloading is the only option, if you live outside the U.S., you can choose either of two ways to download the slot games onto your iPhone, either from the iTunes App Store or from the online casino. On your computer, you can open the App Store in iTunes. Otherwise, you can visit the App Store on your iPhone.
It gets a little trickier for U.S. residents because Apple does not allow U.S. customers to download real money gambling apps directly from the App Store onto their iPhone. How you can get around that limitation apparently depends on the casino. In New Jersey, the various casino-affiliated state-run online gambling websites (such as www.harrahscasino.com and https//:casino.theBorgata.com) also have a mobile platform. If you have an account and wish to play for real money on your iPhone, these casinos have an arrangement with Apple whereby, rather than trying to download the app through your computer, you can do so from the casino mobile website directly. For example, harrahscasino.com provides a link right on the site for you to download the Harrah’s app for Apple iOS devices onto your iPhone. The Borgata mobile casino has a direct link to iTunes where you can download the Borgata Casino app for Apple iOS devices onto your iPhone as well. In both instances, as at any other New Jersey state- operated online casino, you do not necessarily have to live in New Jersey to play, but you do have to be situated inside the state at the time of your play. This regulation applies to computer players and mobile players alike.
As for other mobile casinos outside the State of New Jersey that are open to U.S. players, again, your options depend on what arrangements, if any, the casino has made with Apple to give you access. For example, if you are a player at Bovada Casino, which is licensed by the Kahnawake Gaming Commission, you would visit their mobile site, http://bovada.lv and use your iPhone to scan the QR code directly from the website.
If you are a U.S. resident and you are unsure whether you will be able to play your online casino’s games on your iPhone, finding out should not be difficult. We suggest you contact the customer support team at the online casino whose games you would like to play on your iPhone to make certain that it is feasible to do so. Then, if it is, ask for clear instructions on how to proceed. While it seems reasonable to assume that contacting customer support at Apple would provide a quick and accurate answer, we did not find that to be the case. Your best bet would be to take up any questions or concerns with the casino directly. Most likely, you will be able to play for real money on your iPhone for the simple reason that the casinos know that many of their customers have one and that they need to do whatever is necessary to accommodate them.
Which is Better, an iPhone or an IPad?
Today’s iPhones are easy to use and equipped with touchscreens with special features so you can customize the speed and sound of any game to your liking. Best of all, the iPhone is so small and lightweight, you can put it in your pocket. When you don’t need it, the gadget is discreetly out of the way; when you want it; the handy mobile device is fully ready for you to play your favorite slots anytime, anywhere. These gadgets are so technologically advanced, there are very few disadvantages to using them.
One of the main disadvantages of iPhones is that because they are so small, the screen is also very small, compared to your computer or even an iPad, which makes play more challenging, especially if you have poor vision. The small screen also makes the task much more challenging for developers to adapt slot games to a format that is playable on the iPhone. That is why casinos frequently offer more games that can be played on IPads than on iPhones.
On the other hand, iPhones are more portable than iPads, so they are easier to carry around. They are also more discreet if you prefer not to clue everyone around you what you are doing.