Once we enter a casino, it's easy to get lost in the variety of games that we can choose from. There's sports betting, game tables and of course, the slot machines with the money sounds and the spectacular lighted designs. However, the slot machines we see at a land based casino would have differences. Slot machines can be divided into two types: the reel slots and the video slots. Let's take a look at the difference between the two.
Reel slots, otherwise known as mechanical slots are easy to locate. Reel slots are those with wheels and it is these wheels that we call reels. Reel slots would have many different symbols but they would follow a theme. For example, a reel slot that has the theme fruits would have different fruits as symbols as well as combinations of these fruits. Reel slots could have as little as three reels to five. There are many possible combinations on the reels depending on the paylines. The number of paylines could vary from one to as many as nine. If the player wants to make sure that all the paylines work, they need to put enough money so as to activate all of them.
However, just because we see reels on a slot machine, it's not right to automatically categorize it as a reel slot. Many video slots appear to have reels although they're not actually used. Perhaps it goes back to the idea we all have of slot machines and that idea is a machine with reels. What makes a video slot very different from a reel slot is instead of wheels, they have videos of the symbols. Instead of a wheel mechanically turning, in a video slot, only the computer generates these images and the combinations we see.
Needless to say, when we play online slots, we deal only with video slots. We might see an image of a wheel or a reel, but this does not in any way convert it into a reel slot. Unless there is a mechanical action in the slot machine, it cannot be considered a reel slot.
So which is better, the video slot or the reel slot? It really is just a matter of preference. There is no greater chance of winning in a reel slot as compared to a video slot and vice versa. The odds of winning in a reel slot are the same as in a video slot. However, for the old timers of slots, they love the mechanical spin of reel slots.