While most apps on your PC work best with decent hardware running them, massive advancements in PC and mobile tech are driven by two kinds of software: multimedia programs like video editors, animation suites, and graphic design apps – and gaming. These are obviously the two most graphic intensive categories of software that constantly pushes your CPU, RAM, hard drive space, hard drives access (SSD vs HDD) and, most especially, graphics cards to higher and higher levels of performance. Certainly the release of the Unreal 5 engine, with its life-like 3D graphics, has pushed the likes of Intel and AMD as never before to keep up.

The strange thing about major hardware developments is that though they may be aimed at the most demanding apps and software on your device, they also start pushing up the hardware requirements for even the most humble of apps. Your average online Flash game or Windows Update shouldn’t need the latest software but as anyone who has ever owned a n older phone or laptop could tell you, it’s often the simplest apps that make you realize how much you need an upgrade. 

Which brings us to humble, straightforward online bingo, which should be one of the easiest things to run on both your PC and your phone/ tablet. But is it, though?

Here’s a breakdown of the kind of hardware requirements you’re looking at if you want to have as smooth and as enjoyable an online bingo experience as it is possible to have.

Smartphones and Tablets

PCs and even laptops can be configured, so finding the right hardware can be a bit more complicated but when it comes to phones and tablets, it’s really pretty simple what you should be looking for. The vast majority of devices should manage it, but preferably it should be at least mid-range or even a flashship phone from a couple of years ago. You also want to make sure that it is 5G enabled or has working wifi (both with enough data). Bingo games are usually pretty easy on your system resources so theoretically even entry level devices should just about manage, but they may have slow downs if you have too much running at once and may not even be able to handle all the in-game graphics. On the flipside, it’s hard to recommend spending money on flagship devices like the latest Galaxy S9 Ultra tablet or on Apple’s latest iPhone just for gaming purposes, and in general, they’re mostly for tech heads and power users.

The top picks to get the most out of online bingo on a mobile device are:

• Samsung Galaxy A34 5G (The A54 is even better yet but considerably more pricey) 
• Xiaomi Redmi 12  
• Amazon Fire 10 HD 
• Samsung Galaxy Tab A9 
• iPad 9 (if you have the money)

Any of these is a top notch option for even the most advanced bingo apps, but also keep an eye out for LG, Google and Huawei models in the same price range.

PCs and Laptops

Obviously, it’s much more difficult to just say which model to get with desktop computers and laptops as they are so customizable and variable. That said, because they’re of such high quality (with prices to match it) any Apple Macbook will be more than enough to handle it, whereas Chromebooks and Linux-based computers should easily be able to run any online bingo app or website, just as long as it’s compatible. 

Which leaves us with Windows systems, which are both the most common form of personal computers… and also the most finicky. The actual truth of the matter when it comes to Windows PCs is that as long as it can run at least Windows 10, even just relatively smoothly, even the fanciest online bingo apps are a piece of cake. But the latest versions of Windows are pretty monstrous on your PC’s resources, especially in terms of memory and hard disk usage.

As such, nevermind which computers will run online bingo, the real question is which laptops and desktop computers can handle anything past Windows XP. 

Here are the basic and recommended specs that you should look out for, both as a bingo fan and as a general, even casual, PC user.

• An SSD drive. (Nothing kills productivity than trying to run Windows 10 or 11 on poor, old-fashioned HDD drives.) 
• 8 Gigs of Ram. You may be able to get away with 4gb, but 8 is a much safer minimum. 
• An i3 or the very latest Quad Core Celerons or their AMD equivalents. An i5 and its AMD counterpart are even better. 
• Intel UHD 620 integrated graphics. But dedicated graphics cards are generally a good idea, especially if you’re into more advanced gaming. 
• Medium to fast wi-fi running LTE, Fibre or even DSL. If you have a desktop PC, connect to the internet with an Ethernet cable for more dependable speeds.

And that’s really about it. Clearly, you don’t need the world’s greatest tech to run even the most advanced online bingo games around, but don’t be fooled: once you start looking for entry level and low range devices and PCs, even humble bingo games may start to struggle.