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Online Poker on Your iPhone: A How-To

Even though many computers are pretty mobile, poker players have still found plenty of situations where a laptop just can’t (or shouldn’t) go where they need it to go. With the advancement of smart phones such as Palms, Blackberrys and iPhones, it was really just a matter of time before an app came around that allowed you to bridge that gap on your mobile device.

A dedicated application just for that purpose hasn’t hit the market yet, but with a few existing apps you can create an effective solution that will allow you to take your online poker game with you anywhere you have Wifi access.

How does it work?

We will be using an iPhone VNC application, which stands for virtual network computing. These applications give your iPhone the ability to connect to your computer. You will be able to view and control your desktop from your iPhone whenever both your computer and the iPhone are connected to internet.

Which application to use?

Because there are multiple options, I will write a small review of those so you can pick what suits you the best.

In case of a public WiFi or a WiFi that you don’t own please refrain from using anything other then Jaadu. Also don’t enter any personal information like passwords over the VNC. Always take appropriate steps to secure your computers and internet connections. If you’re unsure what those steps are, then this method isn’t for you.

Mocha VNC Lite

Price: 0.00$
Est. speed: 2 seconds

This application is the only free full functioning VNC app. If you don’t feel like spending money this works. It is noticeably slower then other VNC applications though and only supports the basic keyboard keys.
All in all it is very doable to play online poker with this application, but not the best functioning option.

Mocha VNC

Price: 5.99$
Est. speed: 2 seconds

It doesn’t do much more then the lite version, but supports more keyboard keys like CTRL, ALT, Apple key (Mac), … . I do not suggest getting this one since the lite version is basically the same thing.

Jaadu VNC

Price: 24.99$
Est. speed: 1 second

This app is perfect for users that are willing to spend a bit to get a great functioning application. The speed is almost instantly, and the interface is very user friendly. It can fully take over the control of a computer without any problems. The only problem I have noticed is that I can’t get my dual screens to work. It only shows my main screen.

LogMeIn Ignition

Price: 23.99$ + annual subscription

I haven’t tested this app since you need to pay an annual subscription for using the application. I’m not waiting to pay every year for an application that is available for one dollar more and no extra fees. If anyone has tested this application and wants to write a small review, let me know.

Setting it up

Choose a secure password for your VNC server!

Jaadu

* Search for Jaadu VNC in the Application store and install
* Follow these instructions given by Jaadu

Mocha VNC

* Search for Mocha VNC in the Application store
* Pick the lite or full version, whichever you prefer
* Follow these instructions given by Mocha

Setting up a PokerStars layout

Now that you have a working VNC application we need to get to the practical side of playing poker, for example using different layouts to get the best overview over multiple tables. I will be using Jaadu for the continuation of this guide but it is just as easy with Mocha.

I picked the most practical layout for my iPhone. The stack method, where each table gets maximized and goes on top of the other one. You should use this almost any time. The only exception is when you are playing two tables, then I prefer putting them next to each other.

Setting up the stack layout:

* Open the PokerStars client
* Go to Hold’em Fixed limit micro games
* Open around 20 $0.02/$0.04 limit games and sit out in each one
* Maximize all the tables
* Now click on the small button to the right of the options button on one of the ring game tables
* Save the custom layout. I named mine iPhone stack.

Setting it up with Autohotkeys

The last step is using Auto Hotkeys. This will help us controlling the tables in general, to make playing poker on the iPhone work like a charm.

For this you will need the StarsHotkey script. If you aren’t sure what I am talking about, take a look at my Guide to AutoHotkeys.

I’ve set it up in a way that I can use the standard controls easily.

These are the controls that I will use:

The keys act like this:

Home: Find table needing action
Pg Up: Move up one table
Pg Down: Move down one table

F1: Fold
F2: Call
F3: Bet/Raise
F4: All-in

F5: Bet 3x BB
F6: Bet 2.5x BB
F7: Bet 4x BB
F8: Set to the custom layout iPhone Stack we created

F9: Decrease bet 33%
F10: Decrease bet 20%
F11: Increase bet 25%
F12: Increase Bet 50%

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