Overview
William Hill has long been one of the biggest names in gambling across Ireland and elsewhere, having been set up as a bookmaker in the UK in 1934. Since then, William Hill has developed into a trusted brand among its dedicated customer base, a brand that the bookmaker expanded with the launch of its online casino in 2000. William Hill Casino is yet another good outlet for Irish players looking for a gambling experience that offers the latest gaming technology and a wide selection of great games.
Software
William Hill has been working with expert software provider Playtech since 2009 and, as you'd expect from the market-leading Israeli developer, the software is slick, running smoothly with very short loading times.
The desktop platform is clean, clearly laid out and easy to use, and there can be no complaints about the speed at which it runs. The casino will also notify players to update Adobe Flash Player when necessary, making sure that they’re always able to access the latest titles.
Platform
William Hill Casino users can access over 200 different games on their Windows PC by downloading the 50mb desktop application, while those unwilling to download the casino software can still access over 150 Flash games in the Instant Play version. Unfortunately, the download is not currently supported by Mac, but OS X users can play the range of online Flash games through their browser.
William Hill also offers a mobile service for some of its games, with mobile users able to access a small number of table and slot games via their mobile browser. They can reach the mobile version of the casino by scanning a handy QR code, or by entering their mobile number on the desktop website in order to receive a link via text. Certain games are even downloadable directly to a mobile handset.
User Experience
Accessing William Hill Casino may unfortunately be slightly confusing for new users, with the ‘William Hill Casino’ and ‘William Hill Casino Club’ occupying different parts of the site – the latter is the first result when searching for the casino in Google, while the former is accessed through the bookmaker's main site.
The Casino Club was established in January 2009, while the Casino was set up in November of the same year, and the newer of the two is certainly easier to navigate, with clearly indicated games and help pages.
While users only need one account across William Hill's casino, bingo and sports offerings, the wallets are kept separate, and funds therefore have to be transferred between Casino and Main balances.
Game Options
More than 200 games are available on the desktop software, covering all the major card games, roulette and slots, as well as a number of exciting live dealer options. The online Instant Play casino has only slightly fewer than that, and there is a separate small set of card, slot and scratch games available for mobile users.
As you may expect from the combination of a respected brand like William Hill and a top software company like Playtech, the games on offer are fun to play and boast some impressive graphics. Given William Hill’s prominence as a sports bookmaker, there are a number of football-themed slot and arcade games, plus star endorsements from the likes of Frankie Dettori. Various classic Marvel superheroes also appear in scratch card and slot games.
William Hill offers both real money and practice game modes, but users can only play for real money after registering an account.
Promotions
Deposit promotions are plentiful at William Hill Casino. Its obvious they prefer players deposit cash before garnering generous promotions from the casino. New players are treated to a nice Welcome Bonus that includes free spins. Monthly deposit bonuses are a great way to earn free cash too.
Support and Banking
At William Hill Casino, all the usual debit cards are accepted for payments, and transactions are secured by SSL encryption to give customers peace of mind. Transfers via most methods are immediate, so you can start playing as soon as possible, with online favourites such as PayPal, NETeller and Ukash all accepted. Mobile users can also make account deposits via their devices. Withdrawals are similarly easy, with many of the same transaction methods available.
In Summary
All in all, William Hill Casino is a solid online offering, with a wide variety of games from a top software developer. However, it is slightly let down on the usability front, with site cohesion and wallet integration leaving some room for improvement!
