If you ask me, the so-called smart speakers are a fantastic idea. A small device that can answer questions, play music with a command and even take care of your home? That’s a device straight out of a sci-fi flick! Sign me up! But unfortunately, as the modest success of devices like the Amazon Echo or Google Home has shown us, smart speakers are a better idea in theory than in practice. In reality, they fall squarely into the category of “cool gadgets you use for fifteen minutes before forgetting in a drawer somewhere”. Because let’s face it – most of us don’t really need a $180 smart speaker to play our music when a far cheaper non-smart speaker which connects to our phones can do the exact same thing. The Amazon Echo, while a really fun novelty that has given us plenty of unintentional entertainment over the years, most consumers haven’t really found a good reason to keep it around for everyday use.

And then came Apple, who promised to change that. They promised to do to the smart speaker what their iPod once did to the mp3 player, revolutionizing the entire market forever! And thus the Apple HomePod was announced to an audience of thousands, alongside its specs, functions and, perhaps most importantly, price point. So now that we’ve got concrete data rather than mere promises, one has to wonder: is the HomePod the Second Coming that was promised to us? Is it the revolution in smart speaker technology we’ve been waiting for? Is it worth purchasing? The short and, sadly, very unfortunate answer to all these questions is a resounding “no”.

The HomePod fails on every level when compared to its contemporaries. It was supposed to offer brand new, revolutionary features not found among the competition, but honestly? I’m having a really tough time figuring out what those features are supposed to be, because from where I’m standing, the HomePod doesn’t offer anything new whatsoever. It still plays music, you can still use a digital assistant (like Amazon’s Alexa, except it’s Apple’s Siri) to answer your questions, and if you have a smart home with electronically controlled lights and stuff like that you can control it through the device if you so desire. That’s it. Where’s the promised revolution? Not only that, but the HomePod actually does works WORSE than its competition in one of its main regards – streaming music. You want to stream music from Pandora, Spotify or any preferred service that isn’t Apple Music? Well, in that case, you’re better off purchasing something else.

And perhaps the worst part is the HomePod’s price. Apple’s gadgets have always been ridiculously overpriced, we’ve known that for years, but this just may be a new height. The Echo is $180 and is regularly discounted (on Black Friday the Echo was only $140), while Google Home doesn’t fall far behind, at about $130. How much is Apple asking for its “revolutionary invention”? A whopping $350. And the worst part is that you know people will be lining up to buy it on day one, despite the fact that there are cheaper, better alternatives available today. Don’t be like them, folks. Apple have, on occasion, created good tech. The HomePod is not among them.

When it comes to technology, the online casino industry has definitely seen some rapid development in recent years. Games have become way better, not only in terms of visuals, but also in terms of gameplay, interface, and overall software stability. I remember the first time I tried out this game by Playtech called Video Roulette. Instead of the usual wheel spinning sequence, this game actually used pre-recorded real-life footage during the spin! If you want to try the game out, you can play Video Roulette for free here.

The idea really excited me, and I thought about how awesome it would be if this concept can evolve into something more. Fortunately, a few years later it did, and I had the pleasure to try out the first live dealer casino games. It was and still is my favourite way to play blackjack and roulette! In this post, I will talk a bit about how live dealer games work, and hopefully get you to give them a try.

Live Streams & Technical Stuff

The concept behind live dealer casino games is the following – the player watches a live stream of the game, including a professional dealer (most often a pretty young woman), while playing the game itself through the user interface the platform offers. The dealer is alerted of what the players do via a monitor, and does whatever the game requires her to do – be it dealing cards, spinning the roulette wheel, announcing the winners, etc.

The dealer is actually staring into a camera the whole time, and the feed is shown to all active players on the table. Depending on the Internet connection you are using, and the platform itself, the quality of the stream may vary between HD and a total mess. It is usually controllable via the interface, but nothing can help you if your Internet is not fast enough. Some platforms even have the option of switching the stream off – but where is the fun in that?

Features of Live Dealer Games

Live dealer games feature everything that their RNG counterparts have to offer – and then some. The dealers are really professional, and add a lot to the genuine casino atmosphere that those games are trying to emulate. In addition, some platforms allow you to chat with the dealer, further improving the already great experience.

If you are a high roller, live dealer games will definitely suit your taste. Based on my observations, they have way higher table limits than the RNG games found at online casinos. Those largely depend not on the platform itself, but on the operator that hosts it. Nevertheless, if you want to be able to bet a thousand pounds on a single spin of the wheel – live dealer games are the way to go.

Give Live Games a Try Today!

If you are a fan of casino games and have not yet tried playing at a live dealer table, you have absolutely no excuse – you should have a go at them ASAP. I guarantee you that the experience is as close as you can get to a real casino, without having to leave the comfort of your own sofa. Unfortunately, there are no free-to-play live dealer games, but there are plenty of casinos that allow you to place really small bets.

I hope that live dealer casino games will develop further down the line. As technology gets better and better, I cannot wait to see what the next step in the evolution of casino games will be. Something like VR blackjack is probably already on its way.

Recently, I got into an argument with my friend Simon about a certain videogame called “Mighty No. 9”. Most people would assume that we were arguing about whether or not the game was good or something like that, but that’s not quite the case, actually. No, “Mighty No. 9” is objectively bad – I agree with it, Simon agrees with it, the critics agree with it, it’s not a good game, the only people who think it is one are delusional or have never picked up a 2D platformer in their lives. No, what we were arguing about was whether or not the game even deserved to get made in the first place. Allow me to explain.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with its development, “Mighty No. 9” was made by Mega Man creator Keiji Inafune, who, frustrated by Capcom’s (the company that holds the rights to Mega Man) unwillingness to create more games in the franchise, decided to quit and just make his own through popular crowdfunding service Kickstarter. The resulting crowdfunding campaign overshot its target significantly, managing to bring almost $4 million dollars in from Mega Man fans wanting to see their beloved franchise revived, in one form or another. During the next three year, the release of the game was delayed numerous times, and when it finally released a few months ago, “Mighty No. 9” looked and played like a student game. Tears were shed, allegations of scams were made, and Keiji Inafune’s other Kickstarter projects failed completely (though his initial success has inspired numerous creators to turn to Kickstarter to fund their dream projects, such as Koji Igarashi and Yu Suzuki, creators of Castlevania and Shenmue respectively).

I back Kickstarter projects occasionally. I never back the big projects that get overfunded by 500% – those are pretty safe, and I feel like they don’t really need my support. No, I generally like to back smaller projects (typically games, but sometimes comics and series) that I am seriously interested in, but might not make their goal without my help. Simon, on the other hand, firmly believes that crowdfunding is an absolute scam and is never worth it, no matter what. I mean, just take a look at the Simon Rose Patreon account – he isn’t backing a single creator on that service! And honestly, he does raise some pretty great points – if the project fails, the people who backed it are left hanging dry. Over the years we’ve seen more projects than I can count crash and burn, and even more stuck in limbo indefinitely, either because they were scams or because the developers simply didn’t estimate their budgets correctly. Similarly, even if it does end up succeeding, it may not live up to expectations, like “Mighty No. 9”. Or, in one particular case that sparked a bit of outrage, “Broken Age” – a game backed by thousands of people on Kickstarter – was released for free on PlayStation 4 and Vita not too long after its full release.

But on the other hand, there were plenty of successes on Kickstarter, too. Dozens of games have been released which wouldn’t have been possible through traditional channels. “Undertale” is a fantastic example – a game which actually won GameFAQ’s most recent poll for the best game of all time (a poll which is highly subjective, but still shows just how much love people have for “Undertale”) and was fully funded through Kickstarter. Shovel Knight, Pillars of Eternity, Hand of Fate, The Banner Saga, Wasteland 2, Darkest Dungeon and Elite: Dangerous are all games that have been funded through Kickstarter and have received massive critical acclaim. So Kickstarter is a bit of a mixed bag, and a huge risk… But then again, isn’t any investment?

Most of us 90s kids inevitably grew up with Pokémon – whether it’s the Game Boy games, the anime series that aired on Saturday mornings or even the animated movies, I’m sure that most of us have been exposed even a little bit to the world where young people travel across the land searching far and wide for creatures to capture, train and befriend! The first Pokémon games, “Pokémon Blue” and “Pokémon Red”, were released in 1998 in the US and 1999 in the EU, quickly selling almost 24 million copies between them worldwide. Ever since then, Nintendo hasn’t stopped producing these games, with five more generations released since 1998 and a sixth one set to come out late this year. It seems like every new generation of children has their own Pokémon game to call their own… Except this year, things took a turn for the weird.

Nintendo’s latest attempt at releasing a home console, the Wii U, did not pan out at all – the platform only sold around 13 million units (which might seem a lot, but is really nothing when compared to its competitor the PS4’s 40+ million) and suffered from a severe lack of games due to its unique requirements and lack of processing power. Despite all the good fortune they accumulated with the Wii U’s predecessor, the Wii, the company found themselves in a bit of a bind, quickly losing money and not recuperating their losses quickly enough. In a desperate bid to save themselves, Nintendo did what they had once flat-out denied they’d ever do – they began bringing their games to mobile devices instead of their own proprietary hardware.

That marriage of Nintendo and mobile already produced one app – Miitomo, which, honestly, didn’t really blow any minds. But when the original trailer for “Pokémon GO” hit, suffice to say, minds were exploded harder than a collision of a diet cola truck into a Mentos factory! The premise is simple – you can use your phone’s GPS device to discover Pokémon in the real world. You can capture whoever you discover, completing your collection and training your Pokémon to help them evolve. The types of Pokémon that you encounter vary depending on your location, which gives you an incentive to travel and explore places that you wouldn’t even look at before. It’s literally the dream of every kid who grew up with Pokémon, whether it was in 1998 or 2008.

So, now that the game is out, does it pass the reality check? Surprisingly, yes – while many of the features that fans associate with Pokémon haven’t been implemented yet (such as battles), and there have been a few issues along the way (like a quickly drained battery and some privacy concerns), the game works exactly as advertised! Millions of people have downloaded the app already, and thus far the impressions are solid. I personally am a member of the communities of several mobile games, and I’ve encountered several people who actually quit those games and made “Pokémon GO” their main mobile experience! While the game is only out in a few countries (namely, the US, New Zealand and Australia), international hackers have already found a way to play by downloading the apk file and installing it on their rooted phones. Still, Niantic, the developers of the game, have promised a worldwide release in only a few short days. Here’s hoping that very soon us European fans will also be able to experience what it’s like to catch’em all!

Good news for all the mobile-casino fans that haven’t registered at Leo Vegas yet. The welcome bonus of the operator that is widely considered to be the best mobile casinos in the UK has never been so big! I remember the first time I entered their site around two years ago, they were offering new players the opportunity to claim up to £700 and, if my memory serves me well, 200 free spins, 20 out of which you got for free right after you’ve completed the registration process. Now, this offer is more than doubled when it comes to the bonus amount and also the free spins are more. In fact, if you decide to open an account right about now, you’ll get up to £1500 in deposit bonuses and 250 free spins for selected games.

The Structure of the Offer

All in all, the structure of this bonus is pretty similar to the previous one, just the amounts are different. Right after you’ve signed up, you’ll receive the first badge of free spins – 50, as opposed to 20. With your first deposit, on the other hand, you’ll get a 200% bonus up to £100 and the rest of the free spins – 200 of them to be precise. The second and the third deposit amount are identical – they both offer you a 100% match bonus up to £500. The forth deposit bonus will be a 50% match on your deposit up to £400.

Wagering Requirements and Other Bonus Conditions

As every other casino bonus out there, the welcome offer of Leo Vegas comes with its terms and conditions. First of all, you should know that in order to receive any of the above-mentioned deposit bonuses, you’ll have to top up your account with at least £10. Then, there’s the condition that, in order to be able to withdraw your winnings, you will first have to play through the bonus amount 35 times. This is actually a really low number, as most casinos require you to wager the bonus amount 40-50 times. Another great thing about these terms is that you have all the time in the world to wager your bonus – as opposed to other casinos that take back their bonuses if you don’t wager them in a set amount of time, Leo Vegas casino’s bonuses come with no time restriction. The only exception to this rule is for the free spins – they have a validity period of 3 days. Also, the free spins can be used only on certain games – Guns N’ Roses, Jack and the Beanstalk, Starburst, Mega Fortune Dreams and Twin Spin – all of which are developed by the software house Net Entertainment. As for the deposit bonuses, they can be used on all the games that are featured at the casino, but the different games will have different wagering contribution. Slot games contribute 100% toward the wagering requirement with the exception of Blood Suckers, Dead or Alive and Devils Delight which contribute 70%. Table and video poker games contribute 10% and all other games contribute 100%. All in all, I can say that these conditions are pretty standard and even better than standard.

Warning! Please note that Skrill and Neteller payments are not eligible for the welcome offer.

We’ve known for a while that online gambling, in all of its forms – casino, betting, bingo, you name it – has been steadily climbing the ranks of popularity! Every year, more and more people have decided to try out online gambling and have remained hooked every since, allowing the active userbase to gain a major upward curve in the charts, to the point where the number of people who stopped playing has never been more than the new members who joined! That’s pretty darn amazing for an endeavour that many wrote off as being fraudulent when it first began emerging, wouldn’t you say? Thankfully, despite the nay-sayers online gambling has managed to prove itself as reliable and trustworthy, and now, in 2016, it’s practically everywhere – not only on our computer screens, but also on our tablets and mobile phones.

Yes, thanks to modern innovation and technology, some of the best gambling apps are now available on your mobile device! You can play slots, roulette, blackjack, bingo or place bets, all through your phone! As far as I’m aware, all gambling apps have been designed to be as easy on the bandwidth as possible, allowing you to play them even over 3G, if you want to scratch that gambling itch while waiting for the bus or something like that. Essentially, the apps (be they downloadable, such as those found on the iPhone and iPad’s app store, or web apps you can access through your browser on Android) function pretty much exactly the same as the websites and PC apps do on your computer. They’re a bit more limited, sure, since games developed for PC need to be ported over to mobile, but generally you shouldn’t have any problems at all. Your account information from a PC online casino should work in its mobile counterpart as well, carrying over your deposit and all of your winnings.

Online betting is the least changed between versions due to its nature. If you just got a major scoop on a match, there’s literally nothing stopping you from pulling out your phone and placing a bet within second to take advantage of that information. Unless the betting site has some imposed restrictions (which most don’t), there’s little difference between the mobile and PC versions, except in the design. Online casinos generally have less games on mobile than on desktop, more often than not between 100 and 150, most of which are slots. I’m not awfully familiar with mobile bingo, though, but there’s plenty of sites that can tell you what you need to know about bingo apps. It’s just a matter of finding the information you need and taking full advantage of it!

If you found the above paragraphs too long and didn’t read them, then allow me to sum it up: don’t be afraid to take a dive into mobile gambling, as the experience was specifically designed to be as intuitive as possible for both online casino fanatics and complete newcomers. Good luck!