Carbon Poker

Carbon Poker room is part of the Merge Gaming Network, which is one of the smaller online poker networks. It still manages to punch above its weight though, as it offers a very good experience, characterised by an excellent choice of poker game types and limits. This is backed up by a very efficient and helpful player service team, which we always found very capable.

The software, proprietary to Merge Gaming, is a simple affair - which doesn`t mean that it isn`t fully featured. It gets the job done well, looks good and lets you tweak the interface to suit your playing needs. You`ll always be able to find plenty of competition at the more popular Holdem tables, some of it pretty soft. The more specialised games like HORSE aren`t as well-patronised, but at the right time of the day a good game is always available.

Once we discovered what a great poker room Carbon Poker offers, a number of us started playing there pretty regularly - and we`re recommending it to everyone we know. It`s the kind of poker room that flies a bit under the radar, but offers a superb playing experience that is well worth checking out.

Bonuses and Promos:

• First deposit bonus -100% up to $600 free

• Freeroll entries for 14 days for new players

• New player Cash Chase - 30 day leaderboard race - win cash prizes

• Tourney King - tournament results can win a share of $20,000

• Super Money Tree - turn your VIP points into cash
• Win a share of $10,000 with Sit and Go Leaderboards
• Royal Flush Bonus - extra $500 free

Loyalty Scheme:

• Carbon Poker runs a loyalty program that allocates loyalty points based on your betting patterns. This means that you are accurately rewarded for your play, rather than just lumped into a category. You can use these to enter tournaments for free - and they also count towards your leaderboard position, which brings additional cash prizes.

Rake:
The rake is set at 5% of the pot, with an absolute maximum of $3. The maximum can be less, depending on the number of players at the table.

Traffic:
Traffic at Carbon Poker is not as high as many other online poker rooms, but it`s still enough to ensure that you`ll always find a game to play, at a limit that will suit you.

Software And Features:
The software is very well designed, without a whole lot of distractions - the emphasis is on allowing you to play as simply and efficiently as possible. This doesn`t mean that there aren`t some powerful features that allow you to track your play and customise your experience. It`s just that these don`t get in the way. It`s a solid software platform - we never experienced and freezing, and performance during high-volume tournaments was more than capable.

Supported Games And Limits:
This is where the Carbon Poker really shines. Apart from the usual games (Texas Holdem, Omaha, 7 Card Stud, 5 Card Stud), there are games like Razz, HORSE, Euchre and others. Not many others offer such variety. Limits vary from micro-limit tables to high stakes ones.

Deposit And Withdrawal Options:
Visa, Mastercard, Click2Pay, NETeller, Moneybookers, 1-Pay, Instadebit, EcoCard, Paysafecard, Entropay, ClickandBuy and Web Money.

Competition:
Competition is pretty soft at the lower limit Holdem tables, but stiffens as you move up the limits, or when you go to the tables that offer more specialised poker game types like HORSE.

Player Services:
Excellent service is always available, with a supportive help desk that runs around the clock.

Downsides:
Because of the wide variety of game types, traffic is sometimes a little low on the more unusual games.