888 Poker has to be one of the longest standing online poker rooms. It was founded in 2002 and has undergone quite a few changes in this time, as the online poker industry developed. The ability to grow and change with changing conditions and increasing competition came with an obvious willingness to rise to the challenge time and time again. While 888 Poker may not have the popularity and profile of some of the most famous poker rooms (Titan Poker, Party Poker, PKR to name a few) they simply have been around long enough to have a huge player base.
More than 5 millions of registered users and the fact that a lot of players also make use of 888's offer of casino games, sports betting and bingo, are all a guarantee that you will not find it difficult to find a fitting table at any given time. Actually the somewhat lower profile and the afore mentioned other fields that 888 Poker is engaged in make it much easier for new or still inexperienced poker players to earn some money.
There will always be a lot of fish around when you look for it. Be it some casual poker players, of which there seem to be more of at 888 Poker than at higher profile poker rooms, or some players who primarily play casino, bingo or bet on sports and simply want to take their minds off or wait for their team to start playing, you will find a lot of comparatively easy targets at the lower stake tables.
While we are talking about 888 Poker being not as high profile as some other poker rooms, do keep in mind that they are a very well known and respected brand for a good reason. A poker room that has been in play for such a long time definitely doesn't go unnoticed. Their popularity is boosted by being sponsors of the Middlesbrough Football Club and many other sport teams and sporting events. Which in turn brings many new players.
888 Poker has for some time also been known as Pacific Poker. Only recently did 888 re-design their poker brand and ditch the old Pacific Poker name and look. Their new, modern look is aimed to appeal to poker players visually as well as have a streamlined performance. The whole software has recently been upgraded and is considered among the best and most up to date in the poker industry.
888 Poker Promotions and Bonuses
The 888 Poker bonus for first depositors has to be considered one of the best poker bonus offers in the online poker industry. Even more so for inexperienced players or players with a somewhat small bankroll. While the overall poker bonus offered is not that spectacular by itself (but right on par with most others anyway), the details make this one a great deal.
You will receive a 100% poker bonus up to $600 on your first deposit. Due to that bonus offer being an incremental bonus that is cleared in steps of $10 you will be able to use the already cleared bonus to release the remaining poker bonus. You have 90 days to clear as much of the bonus as possible (ideally all of it).
We always maintain that an incremental poker bonus is the way to go especially for new players who don't know yet how much rake they will produce on average. That way you will not stand there with empty hands when you were not able to clear the bonus, wondering what happened to all that money. The recently changed 888 Poker bonus helps players new to online poker tremendously.
Additionally you will also receive free tickets for seven $500 Depositors' Freerolls that are being held daily on 888 Poker. This is a total prize pool of $3,500. And then there is the $1,000 Depositors' Freeroll which is being played on Saturdays and which you are also invited to. Oh, and did we mention the $50K First Depositors' Challenge yet? We didn't? Well, we just did. Getting started on 888 Poker is really easy as you can tell.
Among 888 Poker's more unconventional promotions is the so-called Rewards Tournaments that reward you with cash as well as a sudden jump in levels in the 888 Poker rewards programme. If you play your hands right, one tournament could mean an advancement of up to three levels in the loyalty scheme of 888 Poker. That plus a lot of cash.
Other running promotions are The Daily Challenge Series with a total prize pool of $145,000 or the Double or Nothing Sit & Go Tournaments. Also players on 888 Poker have the opportunity to hunt the lovely Leo Margets each and every Thursday in the A Por Ella bounty tournament.
888 Poker Features
We already mentioned earlier that 888 Poker is probably one of the best online poker rooms for new players. On the one hand that's because at the low stake tables the competition usually is very easy to deal with, on the other hand the rake system helps a lot, too. While the rake is at an industry standard of 5% and capped at $3, there is a different rake cap for micro and medium limits. For example, a typical beginner's cash game at $0.05/$0.10 has a maximum rake of $0.06 - yes, 6 Cents. $1/$2 games are capped at $1.25 maximum rake. This makes it much easier for new players to get started and earn a bankroll early on.
The software is considered to be one of the best the poker industry has to offer. It is very stable and has all the info and usability you'd expect from one of the best online poker rooms. There are also quite a few fancy details like the 888 Poker bonus bar. While clearing your poker bonus on 888 Poker you will always see a bar at the left top corner when you play at a table. This bar tells you how far you have progressed in clearing your poker bonus and will also tell you how many points exactly you are still missing.
A big plus for 888 Poker players is the fact that you can play in a browser if you prefer. The functionality of the browser client is very close to that of the installed client and you are not confined to play on your computer. Also Mac users will be happy to know that they can be part of the action on 888 Poker.
The 888 Poker customer service is available via telephone, live chat and e-mail support. As usual we suggest you try the live chat as first option as the personnel there seems to be the most competent and the help the most efficient. The e-mail support was surprisingly quick as well when tested, but we assume the reply speed can vary greatly depending on the amount of enquiries by players.
Latest Blog Entries Related to 888 Poker
- Jan 31: 888 Poker show that all sport isn’t as sexist as Sky (Andy)
- Jan 17: 888 Poker Offer an Incentive for Regular Players (Andrew)
- Sep 17: 888 Poker Gets Social (Giorgio)
- Sep 13: New 3D Poker Room at 888 Poker (Giorgio)
| Company location | Gibraltar |
|---|---|
| Founding date | 2002 |
| Quality insurance | Safe Play |
| Software | 888 |
| Platforms | Windows, Mac, Linux |
| Multi tables | Yes, up to 16 |
| Resizable tables | Yes, any size |
| Network | Cassava Network |
| Game variations | Hold'Em, Omaha, Stud, Casino Games, Sports Betting |
| Currencies | $ |
| USA players | No |
| Pros | Many Casino Players and Sport Bettors make a field full of fish, Connected with the WSOP |
| Cons | Medium sized poker network |
| Support | Phone, E-mail |
| Live chat | Yes |
| support@888.com | |
| Telephone UK | 0-800-032-4228 |
| Telephone Intl. | Canadian, Australian, German and French telephone numbers available |
