Ultimate Bet echecks and Absolute Poker echecks are back! This is exciting news for US poker players. After a few months of working out some issues with processing companies, echeck poker deposits are back for both major poker rooms.

The echeck poker deposit option will work much the same as before, but now have some different deposit maximum.

The first deposit must be $50 to $100. After your first deposit has varified, you will be able to increase your maximum deposits as follows:

$100 USD per week

$400 USD per 30 days

Keep in mind, after you have made several deposits and they have cleared. You may want to ask the cashier if they will increase your deposit limits. There is no guarantee, but with special exceptions you may be able to increase the maximum deposit amount.

After you make your first deposit, you can choose to make echecks a “1-click” reload option. Which helps speed up your next deposit using echecks.

After a few months, the issues have been resolved for the major poker room, Full Tilt Poker. This is exciting news for US players as echecks have become a favorite deposit method for USA players and a prefered alternative to credit card deposits.

Full Tilt echecks will work the same as the did before, however there are a few deposit maximums that may have changed.

Your first echeck deposit can be from $10 to $100. After 7 days, which allows account verification you will be able to make more echeck deposits. The maximums are as follows.

Daily $600

Weekly $1500

Monthly $2000

Full Tilt echecks require the same simple information to set up the deposit option. Once you make your first deposit, that information can be stored for fast, simple and safe deposits.

It appears that poker players are once again having difficulty using echecks at Absolute Poker, Ultimate Bet and Full Tilt Poker. If you visit these sites you will see that the echeck option isn’t available. This is a recent development for AP and UB, however it has been reported that echecks have not been working at Full Tilt for a few weeks.

We have found that the echeck deposit option is still available at PokerStars.com.

 Alternate Deposit Option:

If you are having trouble depositing with echecks, we recommend using an ewallet such as PICclub or UseMyWallet.

 Depositing by Credit Card:

If you prefer using the tried and true method of credit cards, try PlayersOnly.com. They have the highest acceptance of credit card deposits among US poker sites.

Update: November 3, 2009- PokerStars echecks are reportedly working. However, there are echeck problems for other poker rooms such as AP, UB and Full Tilt.

June 22, 2009- PokerStars echecks are still experiencing some problems, however they are available on a limited basis.

The problems with echecks that began the first week of June have shown some signs of resolution. A few sites such as Absolutepoker.com and Ultimatebet.com have fully restored the echeck deposit option to their network. However, Pokerstars and Full Tilt are still experiencing some issues. These networks have made the deposit option available again, however it is only on a limited basis. The reason for the limited availablily is not known for sure, but it is speculated that there is a pent up demand for this deposit and withdraw method, so the processor who handles these deposits and payments are currently being overloaded.

We are unsure of when echecks will be fully restored to Pokerstars.com, but we expect a full resolution in a few weeks. The only way to know if the echeck process will work for you is to try a deposit and see what happens. It may also help to try different times of the day. If you find that the echeck deposit options does not work, Pokerstars recommends that their players use one of their alternate deposit options: Visa, MasterCard, Diners Club International, Western Union or Money Order/Cashier’s Check. All of which are US deposit methods, but of course some US players may have trouble with the credit card options.

Below is a Pokerstars.com customer care response to the echeck issue:

Hello,

Thank you for your email.

Due to capacity restrictions, eCheck deposits are currently available on a limited basis. We hope to offer you this option again in the near future.

In the meantime, you may want to use an alternate payment method to deposit. If you need help in using some other deposit method, please send your phone number and an appropriate time to call, to dad@pokerstars.com. Please include ‘phone request’ in the subject line of your email, so that we can contact you quicker. Alternatively, we may provide assistance by email.

We appreciate your continued patience and understanding.

Best regards

Andrew
PokerStars Payment Services

Update: November 3, 2009- Echecks are not working at Full Tilt Poker as of today. Check here for more information on problems with poker echecks.

June 17, 2009- Echecks are reportedly working for FullTiltPoker.com, however availability is limited.

The problems with echeck poker sites that began in the first week of June have begun to see some resolution.  Echecks are in full operation at a few other poker rooms and it has been reported that echecks are available again on a limited basis at FTP.

Most players will notice the instant echecks deposit option will appear in the Full Tilt cashier, which is a good sign that the issues are being resolved. However, depositing by echecks on Full Tilt will be a trial and error situation. The only way to know if they will work for you is to give an echeck deposit a try. If echecks do not work for you, fulltiltpoker.com suggests using one of their other deposit options, however the alternatives are somewhat limted. These echeck alternatives offered by FTP are Visa (US), Mastercard (US), American Express (US), Western Union (US), Cash Transfer (US) and Click2Pay (non-US).

Note: Echecks are back in full operation at AbsolutePoker.com and UltimateBet.com.

Next to player volume, the software of a poker room is probably the most important part of deciding where you play poker online. There are dozens of reputable online poker rooms on the Internet and they all have different features that one would look for when deciding which site to play. How reliable is the poker software, how fast is the poker software, how clean does it look, how easy is it to use? These are all questions to think about when you dive into the online poker world. Whether you have been playing online for years or you are starting today; this is an important thing to analyze.

The Best Poker Software

The important thing to keep in mind is that not everyone will have the same opinions on what software is the best and what software is the worst. That is the wonderful thing about online poker. There is plenty of room to make your own decision and decide for yourself what software is the best. We can always tell you what we think is the best, but does that mean you will agree? Unfortunately not–so instead, we try to guide you and help you figure out for yourself what the best software for you is.

There are a couple of things that you want to think about when it comes to online poker software. Reliability and speed are two of the most important features of the software. This is something that is fairly universal, which most of anybody would agree upon. There is not anyone out there that is going to say that they would prefer slow and unreliable software. With that in mind, you can narrow down your selection a little bit and figure out the most reliable and fast poker rooms on the net.

Features to Look for in Online Poker Software

Other than speed and reliability, you will want to think about some other things when it comes to online poker software. These are the features that would depend on an individual’s preference. An important feature that pretty much every software package offers would be statistics and hand history. Where the problem comes in is that there are a lot of different ways to handle both of these features and present them to the users. So which one do you like the best? That is something to consider. The same goes with features such as multi-table play and also the graphics will have an impact on your opinion.

There is a reason why you have the option to play at so many different online poker rooms. There is also a reason why there are a lot of players at each of them. Every single person has his or her own preferences and opinion. It is just important that you base yours around a real analysis of the playability of the poker room. Do not play somewhere because someone else told you to. Play at a poker room because it is the absolute best fit for your online poker needs.

Editor’s Personal Favorite

Aced.com is a relatively new poker room, but their player base is expanding rapidly. This is mainly due to their creative use of the poker software that gives the player tons of control over the game.

Outstanding Features:

Run It Twice:
Just like in cash games, you are allowed to run the deal twice if it is a heads up, all-in situation where both players agree. Each outcome splits the pot. Let’s say for instance two players are all in with the turn and river to come. Two different trials will be dealt, meaning two different turns and rivers will be played. If player 1 wins the first outcome and player 2 wins the second, they split the pot. If one player wins both, that player takes the entire pot. Running it twice reduces the variance, but it does not change the odds of the hand.

Show 1-card:
This feature allows you to show 1-card when you fold. This is allowed only if you are last to act. You are also still allowed to show both cards if you wish instead. This can be used in many ways, such as maintaining table image. If you have a weak Ace and you lead off and bet strong with a pair of aces on the flop, only to get re-raised. You can fold and show only your Ace. This shows the player who raised that you were not bluffing at the pot, but that player does not know exactly how strong or weak your hand really was. You can use this feature in many ways to keep your opponents guessing.

Bad Beat Jackpot:
Aced.com is one of the few online poker rooms that offer a bad beat jackpot. Many players who have played at live casinos are familiar with bad beat jackpots. They are a huge attraction as it gives the players a chance to be rewarded handsomely for suffering a true bad beat. Aced.com jackpots have been known to grow to over $1 million. How do they work? If a player is beat with a qualifying hand, then the ‘loosing’ hand is awarded 35% of the jackpot. The ‘winning’ hand is awarded 17.5% of the jackpot and the players seated at the table split the remaining 17.5% of the bad beat jackpot. 20% seeds the next jackpot and 10% is returned to Aced. One of the things that makes the bad beat jackpot so great is that you can win just by sitting at the table!

Poker is a very skilled game in many aspects, which nobody could argue with. There are literally hundreds of different variables when it comes to a poker game. Some of the best poker players in the world do not have every skill down to a tee. In fact, a lot of them could use a substantial amount of work. More than likely, there is going to be a couple skills that one of these guys or girls have, that will allow them to do so well in the world of poker.

One of the biggest skills that a great poker player probably has is the ability to read his or her opponents very well. If you know the game inside and out and have this skill; you are going to be successful, hands down. The problem is that many players that want to play online will struggle because it is a completely different game in the aspect of reading opponents and understanding tells.

Online Poker Tells do Exist

Believe it or not, there is such thing as an online poker tell. In fact, there are quite a few of them, and it is possible to read your opponents online. It is not quite as effective and/or skillful than a live poker game but there are a lot of tells to consider. Just like in real life, people have their tendencies and they will mess up somehow. It is your job to figure out what these tendencies are and how to capitalize on the information they are giving out to you.

Common Online Poker Tells

Sometimes it can be extremely difficult to kind ones tell, whether it be online or offline. When you are playing online however, it can be even more difficult. The reason being, is because for one; you are playing over the internet and for two; you can misread things, because there are lots of reasons for your opponents to do things that you may think to be a tell when it was really just nothing. You will understand better as you continue to read about some of the common online poker tells.

Although it may seem rather ridiculous, many players use the chat box. Some may only use it when they have a good hand and others may only use it when they have a weak hand. If you can figure that out about a player, you will have a huge edge. Some players use the auto features to make decisions before it is their turn to act. Many times, players will not do that when they have a strong hand. Once again, this is a tell that could be very valuable.

For the most part, learning your opponents tells online is not a whole lot different than a live game. You will still need to be very observant and figure out for yourself what your opponent’s tells are. It is a skill that is not easy to pick up and takes a lot of time and effort to work at. Once you get good with learning online poker tells, you are going to reap the benefits for the rest of your online poker career.