Month: November 2010

Introducing Blackjack Strategy to New Players

After you have learned how to play blackjack and have taken some time to practice and become familiar with the feel of the game and are comfortable playing, it is time to introduce blackjack strategy into your game.

New blackjack players should be very thankful. Blackjack offers one of the easiest to use strategies that also happens to be the most effective. This is called basic strategy. And it is so basic to use that even players that are brand new to the game can use it and be successful with it.

Basic strategy

Good Blackjack Variations vs. Bad Blackjack Variations

I hear now and again that some players want to know what a good blackjack variation is and what are bad ones. There are some rules of thumb in helping players discern which variations are bad and which ones are not.

The primary indicator of a good blackjack variation is one that does not use side bets as the center point of the game. Yes, I know, that knocks the majority of blackjack variations out of consideration.

But think about it a moment

Automated Blackjack Tables

I have been doing some more thinking about those automated blackjack tables that PokerTek has created. My mind keeps coming back to the idea that PokerTek believes that these automated blackjack tables will increase the social interaction between players at the table.

The whole reason for their belief in increased social interaction is because of the main screen. This central, main screen will have players all looking at the same place on the table. Players then use the controls in front of them to choose how to play out their hands, kind of like how you click on the appropriate button in a game of online blackjack.

But here is the thing that keeps tripping my mind. Blackjack is a one-on-one game, just you and the dealer. The other players

New Play for Real Blackjack App

Spin3 has developed yet another blackjack app for the Apple App Store. The app itself is tied to an online casino, in this case 32Red. Because of that tie, this new blackjack play for real mobile app can only be used by iPhone, iPad and iPod users in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

Which is kind of a bummer for those of us that are not in the United Kingdom or Ireland.

The app, though tied to 32Red, is found through the Apple App Store. Once the player has downloaded the app, he or she is free to play what essentially amounts to online blackjack from their phone. And this is not just an ordinary app blackjack in which you are playing with pretend money. Because of that tie to a real online casino, players can play for real money on their iPhone or other Apple device.

This is another step forward that further merges online gambling with the world of mobile interaction, which is a combination that IGT has already looked into, what with their merger of their WagerWorks and Million-2-1 subsidiaries.

Honestly it does not surprise me that online casinos are working with mobile app developers to bring their casino platforms to mobile users. As it stands most online gambling takes place in the home. But people are on the go more and more, and with that comes even more reliance on mobile technology. And that is what is causing savvy online casino operators to turn to trying to put their platforms into a mobile format.

Why not playing online blackjack on your iPhone while waiting for your flight to arrive?

Right now this Spin3 created mobile play for real blackjack app is only available to players with 32Red accounts. But there are intentions of spreading the play for real blackjack app to other mobile casinos who are clients of Spin3.

What is Blackjack Basic Strategy?

This morning I started in on how it is time to go back to the basics of blackjack. Basics are important. Think of them as the foundation for your blackjack strategy. And basic strategy should be the basis of all of your blackjack strategy.

Also this morning I talked about basic strategy. I said that it was only effective in lowering the house edge to 0.5% if you played it perfectly. But I never said why.

Basic strategy is usually shown in a chart. All of the dealer

Basics for Blackjack Strategy

Between the news, the blackjack apps and my thoughts on blackjack misconceptions, I have been rather neglectful of blackjack strategy. And we cannot have that now can we?

I figured the best way to jump back into blackjack strategy was to look at the basics again. Even experienced blackjack players should go back and look at the basics. For one thing it never hurts to see where you came from. Who knows, maybe you forgot something. And keeping firm on the basics helps to keep your more advanced strategies solid.

In other life, as I like to put it, I worked in retail and a lot of our training was