Why Don’t Casinos Use Dimes?

Naturally, when it comes to playing at an online casino platform, physical denominations don’t play a role in gamblers betting options — but that still leaves many players wondering why certain land-based casinos avoid handing out certain coin denominations, like dimes.

Most people with an interest in land-based and online casino games has heard of ‘penny’ pokies, which are gaming picks that accept the lowest denomination of currency available. However, something that many lay people don’t know is that dime physical spinners are not a thing, even though nickel and quarter ones are floor mainstays.

Below, the mystery of why dime games at casinos for real money are not commonplace in Australia (or Vegas for that matter, the gambling capital of the World).

Read on to discover why and when the decision to remove these options from gaming areas got made.

Why & When Did Casinos Stop Using Dimes?

Going by the opinion of many gambling experts, including the renowned, Wizard of Odds, Michael Shackleford, since slots can accommodate any coin payment with quarters, nickels, and pennies, dimes serve no purpose — they are superfluous.

The removal of dimes in gambling machines reduces the amount of hopper distribution. Hopper distribution makes devices easier to control, as there is one less unit of currency to manage.

With fewer currencies, a machine can allow a cabinet to have more space for other things. Statistically, ten-dollar and ten-cent denominations do not get used nearly as much as quarters and twenty-dollar bills. So, it makes sense to save space and let players utilize mainly the money they most like to use when testing their luck on products that produce random outcomes.

Another reason many veterans bandy about the absence of dimes from casino play is that, due to their size, they tend to jam machines. Because of their non-eligibility for machine gameplay, many operators also omit them from table action.

Everyone that has ever played blackjack online or enjoyed twenty-one fun at a high-end property knows that the bottom three tiers of chip denominations are one, five, and twenty-five.

Concerning when Las Vegas casinos started to phase out dime slots, there is no precise date. These have always been a rarity, with some properties removing their last sets of dime games in the early-2000s. Connecticut’s most renowned gambling establishment, and one of the biggest ones in the US, the Mohegan Sun, removed its last dozen dime machines in October 2007. And such devices went into the annals of history at the Foxwoods casino in Connecticut in 2005.

Today, anyone would be hard-pressed to find a dime casino coin slot at any US gambling venue.

Can You Make 10-Cent Bets Online?

Yes, of course, you can make 10-cent bets at many casino sites. Thousands of online gaming products are out there that accept ten-cent wagers. Reading internet casino reviews lets you see which sites offer minimum deposits, and how low the required wagers are to play those games. Whether you’re low-balling or high-rolling, you can find a site that fits your needs.

Some of the ones experienced gamblers recommend are Primal Hunt and Faerie Spells from Betsoft, Rival’s Johnny Jungle, Realtime Gaming’s Lucky 6, and Dragon Gaming’s The Bank Heist. The latter is a novel action-inspired reel spinner that has an RTP of 96%, ten-paylines, and implements a 5×3 layout. It accepts bets up to five Australian dollars, boasting a free spins round that gives away up to fifteen complimentary reel rotations. Inside this mode, gamblers stand a chance to land up to 3x multipliers.

In terms of RNG-powered table games, a quality dime choice is Blackjack MH (Multi-Hand) from Concept Gaming. It allows wagers up to one hundred Australian dollars and has a house edge of only 0.67%.

It’s a little-known gem that hit gambling sites in October 2015 and one that few gamblers from Australia have chosen to explore. It may have a max payout of only 2x, but it lets card gaming mavens play five hands per round.

Land-Based Casinos Have Abandoned Coins

Sadly, patrons at fewer and fewer gaming properties can hear machines go cha-ching.

Coin counters at cashier cages are virtually a thing of the past, as many markets have retired coin payout devices and have moved into ticketed systems. IGT (International Game Technology), one of the world’s oldest and best slot manufacturers, has been incorporating its EZ Pay coinless technology in its spinners since the early-2000s. That tech also gets popularly referred to as TITO, standing for its ticket in, ticket out voucher scheme.

Twenty years ago, around a sixth of all slot machines in North America implemented a ticketing system. Today only one venue on the Las Vegas Strip has coin-operated slots — that is Circus Circus. As you guessed, the reason for this is this property’s carnival-like theme and nothing else. These games also have super high payouts, with RTPs up to 97.4%, an unheard-of percentage for modern slots. Nowadays, most physical reel-spinning titles have RTPs of 92% or lower.

In total, there are three Vegas casinos with coin-based slots. Aside from Circus Circus, the other two are in the city’s downtown area. They are the El Cortez Hotel & Casino, and the California Hotel & Casino.

Even though coin machines offer a sense of nostalgia, providing a specific lost-era gambling authenticity, the reality is that they are a hassle for operators to maintain. Plus, voucher games allow for swifter, more headache-free gameplay for gamblers. Hence, since they benefit both parties, they quickly became the sector standard.