Handheld technology has changed our world in an amazingly short amount of time. The first mobile phones were released in the 1970s but they were incredibly bulky and expensive objects that had to be assembled before being used. Very few people owned them or considered them a necessity.
Pagers filled some of that space for a while, bridging the gap between landline and handheld communication. By the 1980s-90s, PDAs and pagers were widespread among certain demographics but were still not seen as a core part of everyone’s daily lives.
The turn of the 21st century is when we really saw a turn in the importance of handheld technology. In just 25 years, mobile devices have gone from a niche product to a fad to a daily essential for work, communication and entertainment. Very few pieces of technology have risen so rapidly and dramatically and had such a deep impact on our culture and our day to day lives.
One of the unexpected ways that handheld technology has had an impact is in the gambling industry. iGaming has become a thriving sector in large part because of handheld devices and the ability to play casino games and bet on sports on the go.
This article will first look at the types of gambling that have been revolutionised by handheld technology and then look at the wider changes that handheld technology has brought about.
Most popular types of mobile gambling
Gambling on the go isn’t for everyone and it isn’t for every type of game either. Some players will always prefer to place their bets in person, take a seat at the poker table or go to the bingo hall as a weekly social engagement. For the rest of us, there are a few types of online gambling that have become incredibly popular.
The first of these are online casinos, particularly online slot machine games. Online slots are easy to play on handheld devices because they are simple, have lots of variety and don’t require complicated controllers or extra screens. Other classic casino games like blackjack and roulette are also very popular on handheld devices.
Online sports betting is the other type of online gambling that is particularly popular on mobile devices. Betting on handheld devices means it’s possible to bet while you’re out watching the match with friends, while commuting on the bus or train or anywhere else.
In-game betting
One of the newest developments in sports betting has been pushed forward by the popularity of handheld devices for gambling. This is in-game betting, which is also known as live betting. It is not available for every sport or in every market, but it is rapidly becoming one of the hottest sectors of the online sports betting market.
In-game betting is fairly self-explanatory. With traditional sports betting, the sportsbooks close bets before the event begins. With in-game betting, bettors can place bets throughout the game. Sometimes, these bets are on the results of the entire game but more frequently they are on the results from each half or events such as who will score next.
Guides and reviews
The expansion of online gambling thanks to handheld technology has also resulted in the growth of other industries. Similar to smartphones becoming the norm and how we saw tons of accessories immediately pop up on the market, every new industry development sparks companion industries. In the case of online gambling, the companion industry has been review sites.
A guide site like Casino Sherlock can direct players to legitimate online casino sites to play at. These guides provide detailed reviews based on expert study of the site. They consider the games offered, customer support options and response time, payment methods, bonuses and licenses.
These guides and review sites provide a valuable service for players, directing them to legitimate sites and protecting them from scams. They also review specific games, with some offering demo or free-play versions, so that players can figure out which games they enjoy and the best betting strategies.
It is important that players remember that these guides are also businesses. They are affiliated with some of the online casinos they review and may have relationships with other gambling brands. This isn’t a problem, just something to be aware of.
App-based gambling
Mobile gaming has become one of the most lucrative sectors of the entire video game industry in the last few years and almost all of those games are apps. App-based gaming is one of the most important developments that the rise of handheld technology has brought about because it has changed the focus of the gaming industry.
In the earlier days of online casinos, sites were designed for desktop play and nothing else. Slowly they were optimised for mobile use, but it was a slow process with games being added to libraries gradually. The transition to offering online casino apps has enabled gambling on the go and makes it possible for players to have access to the same massive casino game libraries that desktop players have always had access to.
This has made gambling on the go much more appealing for players since they no longer feel limited to a few games or like second tier players.
Decentralisation of the gambling industry
Changes in gambling laws and the rise of online gambling have had a major impact on the gambling industry and how it operates. The popularity of handheld devices for gambling has helped to expand the gambling industry and change it from being dominated by a few major brands.
Now that all a gambling business needs is a good app to run a casino or a sportsbook, it is much easier for smaller independent gambling brands to get involved and launch their own sites. As in most industries, this competition has been great for customers.
With so many gambling companies, large and small, vying for players’ attention and resources, they are forced to offer a wider variety of quality games and more generous bonuses to stay relevant and make money. Players now have a better selection of games with increased quality and variety, mobile casinos that cater to their needs and tastes and the opportunity to collect high value bonuses.
In more global terms, this decentralisation of the gambling industry has had financial impacts around the world. Malta, for example, has seen a major boost in its economy thanks to the number of gambling brands that have chosen to be based there.
Conclusions
Online gambling is a phenomenon that no one really expected to take off in quite the way that it did. The same can be said for mobile phones and smart devices. It is exciting to see how these two modern phenomena have overlapped.
Handheld technology has revolutionised gambling on the go by making it more accessible and convenient and also by changing some of the ways that we gamble. Since it seems unlikely that either handheld technology or gambling will lose any of their popularity any time soon, it will be exciting to see how these two continue to revolutionise and be revolutionised by each other.
