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Playing free video poker online makes a lot of sense, as the game offers all the excitement of traditional poker with a few new wrinkles added in. It’s also a solo game, meaning you can play by yourself without having to deal with a lot of people doing their best Phil Hellmuth impression. Finally, playing expert strategy on some video poker machines will actually tilt the advantage in favor of the player, which is why some dedicated gamblers opt for video poker machines instead of slots.

In this article, we’ll discuss the basics of video poker, as well as listing the wide variety of games available. Once you’ve picked a suitable Internet casino, you’ll be able to play free video poker online with minimal effort.

Play Free & Real Money Video Poker Games

Types of Free Video Poker Games Online

Even if you’re going to play video poker for free, it still helps to know about the available games. The following are some of the most popular options, although the selection will vary from casino to casino.

Jacks or Better Video Poker – The most common variety of video poker, this game is also referred to as “draw poker.” Players receive a payout based on the strength of their poker hand, and they must have at least a pair of jacks before they can finish in the money. The most coveted hand is the royal flush, and the game will offer a return of 4000 credits if you make the maximum wager. Playing five credits (the maximum) yields a theoretical return of 99.5%, while playing with fewer credits offers a possible return of 98.4%.

Double Bonus Video Poker – A variation of Jacks or Better, this video poker machine offers an additional payout for getting a hand with four aces. The 10/7 version of the game–meaning 10 times your bet for a full house and 7x for a flush—offers a theoretical return of 100.2% when combined with expert strategy. The lowest payout is one credit for getting a pair of jacks on a one-credit wager, while the highest is the royal flush (4000 credits on a 5-credit bet). The bonus for four aces pays 800 credits for a five-credit wager and 160 credits for a wager of a single credit.

Bonus Poker – Another game based on Jacks or Better, but this time a higher payout percentage is offered for a hand with four of a kind. Different versions offer varying levels of payouts, so always search for the one that give you the best chance of a big payday.

Double Double Bonus Video Poker – Another Jacks or Better variation, but this time the game offers additional payout based on various four-of-a-kind hands. The royal flush remains the top payout with a maximum jackpot of 4000 credits, while the biggest four-of-a-kind bonus is awarded for four aces combined with a two, three, or four.

Deuces Wild Video Poker – All twos are wild in this version of video poker, and a four of a kind hand occurs at an average rate of once every fifteen hands. A royal flush comprised on non-wild cards offer the top payout of 4000 credits, while a royal flush made up of one or more wild cards offers a 125 credit payout for the maximum wager. The lowest hand that pays is three of a kind, while playing maximum coins with perfect strategy yields a theoretical return of 100.8%.

All American – One of the highest return versions of video poker, this Jacks or Better variant offers increased winnings for straights, flushes, and straight flushes. It also reduces the payouts for pairs and full houses.

Tens or Better – This game is like Jacks or Better, except it begins to offer payouts with a pair of tens or better.

Low Pay Free Video Poker

While the full-pay versions of video poker can give the player an edge over the house, casinos also have plenty of low-pay versions designed to offer lesser payouts and therefore greater profits for the house. Luckily, you can spot these machines by looking at their pay tables, and it’s always wise to steer clear of them in favor of the more generous machines.

The full-pay version of Jacks or Better, for example, offers nine times the player’s bet for a full house and six times the wager for a flush. This would be expressed as 9/6 Jacks or Better. Short-pay versions of the game range from 9/5 Jacks or Better to 6/5 Jacks or Better. Since a large amount of players won’t bother to look at the pay tables, they’re likely to play one of these games instead of their more generous counterparts. This results in bigger hauls for the casino, which makes up for any losses they might suffer on the full-pay versions.

Now that you understand the basics of the game, you can play video poker for real cash online just like a pro. Even though you won’t increase your bankroll this way, it will prepare you for the day when you decide to visit your favorite casino and put some real money on the line. Just remember to manage your bankroll and utilize perfect strategy, and you should walk away a winner more often than not.

The History of Video Poker

Video poker got its start in the 1970s thanks to Si Redd, who was then working for Bally. He pitched company executives the idea of a game based around draw poker, but they were more interested in slot machines at the time. So Si took out a patent on the game, partnered with Fortune Coin Company from Reno, and started his own enterprise known as Sircoma.

The game of video poker got off to a slow start, but it began to pick up momentum in 1981. With his newfound success, Si was able to take Sircoma public, and it’s now known around the globe as IGT (or International Game Technology). Video poker is still going strong, and a visit to any casino will reveal hundreds of variations and even more pay tables.

As the name suggests, no download Texas holdem is playing a
game online or on a mobile device without being forced to
download a software package first.

This may seem a bit strange if you’re fairly new to online
and / or mobile poker, but some poker rooms still have download
solutions and when poker was first available to online players
your only option was to download a poker room client.

Keep reading to learn the other names that players call no
download solutions, how to get started, the differences between
download and no download, and how your choice of software
solutions need to be considered when you think about your long
term holdem goals.

Other Names

No download Texas holdem refers to any way you can play
without downloading the poker room client. You can find many
different names for this that are used now and have been used
over the years. Here’s a list of common names used for no
download poker options:

• Flash
• Mac
• Instant or Instant Play
• Browser Based

Many players also consider mobile Texas holdem solutions as
no download. It’s usually played using an app on a mobile
device which isn’t the same technology as traditional no
download games on a desk top or lap top computer, but it doesn’t
really matter if you understand the technology. As long as it
works it doesn’t matter if you know how it works.

One issue is you generally can’t use apps designed for mobile
devices on your regular computer. If the mobile tablet or phone
accesses the game through a browser you can usually do so as
well on a regular computer, but an app is designed for mobile
use, not computers.

If you include mobile devices, here are a few more common
names that may be used:

The first no download Texas holdem solutions were created
because people who owned Macintosh computers were having a hard
time playing online poker. Their only option was to run a
special software program called an emulator that acted like a
Windows based system.

These programs didn’t work well so most Mac owners simply
didn’t play. The early online poker rooms didn’t like missing
out on the extra profit that this group of owners represented so
the companies started looking for solutions.

The software solutions designed to be downloaded on Windows
based computers wouldn’t work on Macintosh computers and
couldn’t be adapted to work either. But if they designed a flash
based product the Mac users could play on their computers. This
created the entire no download poker section of the industry and
Mac players have had poker options ever since.

How to Get Started

Getting started with a no download Texas holdem option is
easy. When you decide to sign up at a poker room that offers
this option you need to either set up an account and log into
the instant play poker section of the site or access the poker
room first and then sign up for an account.

Because everything happens in your browser it doesn’t matter
which order you have to use to get started. Once you sign up for
an account the first time all you have to do from then on is log
in and start playing:

• Once you have an account and load the poker client
  either find the free money section and join a table or make
  a deposit in the cashier area.

  **It’s always a good idea to try at least a few
  hands at the free money tables to make sure the software
  doesn’t have any glitches and so you can learn where all
  of the controls are located.

• Click the link to the cashier area and look for the
  options available to players where you live to make
  deposits.
• Pick one of the options that you have access to, make a
  deposit, and start playing.

  **If you have trouble making a deposit, check with
  someone in the support department.

• Also keep an eye out for promotional bonus codes before
  you make a deposit.
• Often you can get matching deposit bonuses that can
  double your starting bankroll. Always read all of the terms
  and conditions before you play for a poker bonus.

Where to Play

Not every online poker room offers a no download Texas holdem
solution. You can feel safe using any of the poker rooms listed
on this web site because we never list a poker room where we
don’t trust our own money, but not every room we list has an
instant play option.

When you visit a site where you want to play look for a link
or button advertising a no download, flash, or browser based
option. If you don’t find one you can contact support and ask
them if they have a solution, or simply download the main client
and get started that way.

If a site advertises a Mac solution you can probably use it
on your computer. But if it has an Apple solution this usually
means it’s for the iPads and iPhones. This type of solution
usually won’t work for regular PC users.

Differences Between Download and No Download

Once you join a table and start playing you probably won’t
notice much difference between a download and a no download
option. It’s possible that you won’t be able to see any
difference between the two options.

You need an internet connection to play using either
solution, but the framework is already on your computer with a
download client, so it may be a bit faster doing everything
before you start playing. But as long as you don’t have any
problems you probably will soon forget if you’re playing
download or no download Texas holdem poker.

Your Location

Players in certain locations aren’t allowed to play at some
poker rooms. Some players get the bright idea that they can get
around this by using no download and / or mobile solutions. They
combine these options with IP cloaking or spoofing to try to
fool the online poker rooms into thinking they’re located
somewhere else.

So players have been trying for years to figure out a way
around this.

The problem is that even if you can fool the software into
letting you sign up and play how are you going to handle the
account details and the banking details? You have to be able to
move money into the poker room and get it out and to do this you
have to have a bank account in a country the poker room accepts
players from.

You need to simply find a poker room that accepts players
where you live instead of trying to game the system. In the long
run you’ll be much better off.

For the most part if you find a poker room that lets you make
a deposit you can feel fairly safe about playing there. You need
to research the site and make sure they have a history of taking
care of players and you should never play with more money than
you can afford to lose, but most of the better known poker rooms
are safe and have a solid track record.

Of course you also need to be aware of the legal issues
concerning playing online Texas holdem where you live. Many
countries and jurisdictions have licensed and regulated online
poker, making it safe and easy for their citizens to play. But
other countries force you to play in a gray area, not knowing
for sure how legal playing actually is.

If you have any concerns or questions you should research the
government supplied details about online poker on the web sites
they run in your location and / or speak to an attorney. You
probably need to find one that has some experience with online
gambling, because most lawyers don’t know anything about it.

Strategy Considerations

This may sound a little silly, but if you want to be the
absolute best Texas holdem player that you can be you need to
analyze even the smallest part of your game. This includes
things as seemingly insignificant as your software choices. If
you’re not willing to do every single last thing needed to
maximize your poker profitability then you don’t need to worry
about whether you use a download or no download solution.

A large part of being a winning holdem player is mental.

You have to do everything you can to keep your mind in a
profitable place when you’re playing poker. This includes not
thinking about the software that you’re using to play online.
Anything that takes your attention away from the game can cost
you money.

Depending on your internet connection and computer
capabilities, you may have trouble playing with a no download
solution. A slower internet connection speed and / or older
hardware can create lag times in no download Texas holdem games.

Because the framework of the game isn’t already downloaded on
your hard drive a no download solution can be resource
intensive. This can create issues while you’re trying to play.

You need to find a solution that works well enough to give
you peace of mind while playing. The last thing you want to do
is be distracted by something like this and lose a big hand or
get knocked out of a tournament.

On the other hand, if you play in large tournaments that can
last for hours you may want to find a solution that offers the
chance to play across a wide range of devices. Some no download
solutions let you play on your regular computer and also on a
mobile tablet or phone.

If you find one of these solutions you can start a big
tournament on your home computer and if it lasts for 10 hours
and you need to run out for a minute you can switch over to your
mobile device until you get back.

Free No Download Poker Games

Conclusion

If you have a stable connection and your favorite poker room(s)
offer a no download solution it may be the best option for
you. But if your room offers both a download and no download
option you need to consider your options. You should try both
before making a final decision.

Free Online Poker Games No Downloads Required

The bottom line is most online Texas holdem players can use
either type of software solution so you probably don’t need to
worry about it. Just follow these steps:

Poker Games No Download No Registration

1. Find a poker room that accepts players from where you
   live
2. Sign up
3. Follow the instructions
4. Start playing!