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Why Bingo Devices Are Not Slots

A lot of times, you’ll hear mechanical Bingo game devices referred to as “Bingo slot machines.” Although mechanical Bingo games and slots can look very similar, they are not really the same thing in the strictest sense.

The primary difference between slot games and Bingo machines is the payouts. You are not going to become an instant millionaire playing a mechanical Bingo device, no matter how vicious your church’s Thursday night game gets! As a whole, Bingo machines do not pay out a lot. Slots, on the other hand, can really dole out life-changing amounts of money on a whim. States have a hard time classifying the amounts of money won or lost at Bingo as gambling, which is why they may permit these devices while calling slots illegal.

Also keep in mind that, with Bingo machines, you are playing against other players. You may be sitting in front of a high-tech device instead of laying down chips or marking your card with one of those funny round stamps, but the basic premise is the same. With slots, unless you are playing a progressive jackpot device linked to other casinos (which still is not the same as playing against other Bingo players in the same room), you are playing against the house. You will not find Bingo devices in Las Vegas and Atlantic City casinos with the slot machines, although some of these establishments do have Bingo as among their attractions.

All these differences have meaning. National gaming authorities have classified bingo devices as Class II machines, whereas slot machines are Class III. National and state gambling laws are based on these classifications.

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