Monday, March 13, 2006

SITE REVIEW - BET365 POKER (Prima Skin)

Then there's Bet365poker, a multi-action betting destination whose poker portion seems to be on a rising arc within the greater arc of the Prima Poker family. Bet365 is an aggressive, flashy player: it does about as much as can be expected with its overlay of the standard Prima game engine, with one of the nicest graphic packages and cleanest looks it can derive.

Our standard disclaimer applies: Examining the differences between competing Prima skins usually boils down to looking at the bonus and promotional programs, plus customer service. Bet365' basically has only one signup offer, although it allows most new customers to add $50 to their bankroll with relative ease. If you have bankroll concerns --- who doesn't? --- this pushes Bet365 quite high on the list of new sites to visit; the quick access to a bonus $50 gives you a safety margin to work against if your poker skills aren't as sharp as you'd like. And if your poker skills are good? Guess you just made fifty smackeroos, sharky.

Bet365 is a hit-and-git venture for the most hardcore of the poker whores; since they have traditionally had no reload offers of note, these players tend to flee quickly for greener pastures. However, Bet365 has recently introduced some retention programs that should increase their customer loyalty, including an attractive offer (September '05) that just netted this Bet365 customer an extra $100. Frankly, I'm glad I gave them a chance and kept giving them some action --- they rewarded my loyalty quite generously.

Bet365 also tosses in some nice freerolls, including a weekly $5,000 giveaway that requires nothing more than an active and open account, and a monthly $25,000 freeroll that requires only 250 qualifying raked hands (easy to do) in the previous calendar month. This is on top of the already generous base Prima freerolls. I always find time to play a few laps on Bet365; you should think about it, too.

Customer service? I'd rate it as average-to-above-average among the Prima skins. A mild complaint has to do with withdrawal processing: Since this is done manually and typically includes a two- or three-day wait, it would be nice if when they do get around to processing and paying your withdrawal, they could send you an automated e-mail telling you it's been sent. But no payment happens instantly; as with any of the Prima skins, all the bonuses are also manually calculated and paid, which places pressure on customer-support people as requests fluctuate. Still, Bet365 has an acceptable, if not speedy, turnaround.

(Author's note: I need to add an addendum here --- Bet365's cashout services have been much improved, and I've had a couple that were processed instantaneously. That's just downright excellent.)

Give 'em a try. Maybe you'll cash in, cash out, move on, drop some acid --- I believe the author has just dated herself on that one. (Your humble author has never dropped acid, by the way.) Bet365 gets a passing grade: stop on in.

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