TEXAS HOLDEM ONLINE POKER

Whether they are in KinderCare or elder care, boys like toys for Christmas.

An iPod would be nice. A bass boat would be even better. Or a Harley.

Alas, those toys are a tad pricey. Here's one that will put a smile on your big boy's face for less than $40.

It's hip. It's hot. It's video poker.

Put the phone down. There's no need to call the police or Gamblers Anonymous or any other killjoy.

These video poker games are perfectly legal and devour only AAA batteries. They won't wipe out your IRA one quarter at a time.

Think of hand-held poker games as solitaire for the 21st century. The hottest games are based on an explosively popular form called Texas HoldEm, the game of choice at multimillion-dollar tournaments and penny-ante parish picnics alike.

There are at least a dozen different electronic versions of the game. Some are computer-based, others are hand-held. The latter type is a premier stocking stuffer this Christmas season.

Sharper Image in Oxmoor Center recently sold 10 units to one woman. She planned to send them to friends and relatives all over the world, which seems fitting since the hand-held games are an excellent travel toy.

"If you were on a plane, it would easily hold your attention the whole flight," poker aficionado Ede Warner said.

Read the instructions

Warner test-drove the Tournament Texas HoldEm Poker Talking Electronic Game sold at Sharper Image, a $39.95 model that's among the best and most expensive in its class. It features two tournament formats, including one that pits the player against 190 rivals.

"It was enjoyable and challenging," said Warner, 41, a communications professor at the University of Louisville. "The biggest problem is that you can't play the game without reading the instructions. It's pretty complicated. Once you figure it out, it's fine. But I nearly put the game down out of frustration at first."

Bryan Dillon, a Louisville lawyer and tournament poker player, didn't discern much difference between the Sharper Image game and a cheaper model sold at Taylor Trunk and other stores.

Tournament play

Excalibur Electronics' World Series of Poker game ($34.95) is easier to play but doesn't offer a tournament option.

"That's a drawback in my opinion," said Dillon, 50, who finished 192nd out of 2,576 players in the World Series of Poker last May. "Tournaments are the wave of the future, and if you're interested in really playing the game, that's the format you need to learn."

There is also a Texas HoldEm game made for Nintendo's GameBoy Advance ($19.99), and several versions made for PCs (such as Turbo Texas HoldEm by Wilson Software, $89.95).

But serious players such as Dillon, Warner and Jack May, a Louisville real-estate agent, say there's really only one way to play electronic poker — online.

Sites such as partypoker.com have better graphics and sophisticated features, such as a review function that lets you evaluate how good (or bad) your strategy was by letting you look at other players' cards and bets after a hand is played.

Poker sites let players join games that best suit their skill level and pocketbook. Entry fees generally range from nothing to $200.

"You can get your feet wet by playing a $5 game and you'll have a lot of fun," said May, who won $3,500 for finishing 10th in an online tournament earlier this year. "You'll learn more by playing against other people than you would with a video game."

No bluffing

Indeed, one of Warner's biggest complaints about the Sharper Image game was its machine-like predictability.

"It never bluffs. It only bets when it has great cards, and it doesn't take too long to figure that out. That's a big strategic downfall, and it had a lot to do with why I was able to finish first and second in the two 190-player tournaments I played."

Not every poker fan likes Texas HoldEm, and not every benefactor is willing to spend $30 or more. So we tested a cheaper, simpler model called Big Screen Poker ($19.95) that plays traditional five-card draw.

Our panel was unimpressed.

"It's too simple," Warner said. "I lost interest in it pretty quick."

The manufacturer, Radica Games, says the game is suitable for players 8 and older, which might explain its lack of sophistication. Simplicity aside, it's not a game that Warner, the father of an 8-year-old boy, would recommend to youngsters.

"Kids don't need to learn poker," Warner said. "If they are going to play cards, let them stick with Old Maid and Go Fish."