Pokerstars or Full Tilt
People often ask me, “What’s better, pokerstars or full tilt?” Sometimes they phrase the question, “Which one has better tournaments, full tilt poker or pokerstars?” While I often tell them that my personal favorite for online poker tournament action is pokerstars, I emphasize that they should explore their options carefully. I recommend spending time on each site, checking out the interface, the software, the security, promotions, the types of games, the level of customer support and who else is playing on the site (after all, in these tournaments, you will be playing real people).
Software
One key issue that is often overlooked is the type of software each poker site offers and its compatibility with different computer platforms. In many cases, the software is only designed for PCs, leaving Mac users out of luck. However, Pokerstars has recognized this problem and built both PC and Mac compatible software. This is something that Full Tilt has yet to do, meaning that if you are a Mac user, the decision is made for you - Pokerstars it is.
On the other hand, if you are new to poker, Full Tilt offers what they call the Full Tilt Academy, where they have lessons and tips from all the poker greats to help you refine your skills and choose which version of poker suits you best. At the Academy, they will teach you how to bet, bluff, limit and do the poker math. Pokerstars does offer some basic pointers and has explanations for its various games, but nothing as nearly comprehensive as Full Tilt.
In finale, if you have a Mac, are an experienced online poker player, or just like things bigger, go for Pokerstars. If you need to learn, go Full Tilt.