Protege Poker Chips From Sidepot: High End Elegance

We recently got our fingers on some Protege chips from Sidepot. We ran them through the paces, and have decided that for high-end poker chips, these are definitely among the best in breed. These are not your totin' chips, these clay beauties are for breaking out when the big fish come to play at your place. Read on find out what we liked about these fine chips, and how you can get a set of your own.

To begin with, let's list for you the features of the chips from the manufacturer:

* Industry Leading Innovation! Vintage true shaped/punched inlays.- The unquestionable marquee of our exclusive Protege clay poker chip line. A highly coveted poker chip feature in the casino chip collecting industry for years, and unavailable for several decades on newly produced chips, the Protege line eloquently brings back this classic retro styling.

* Industry Leading Innovation! Smooth clay touch and feel built right into the mold of the chip – A major innovation for home game poker chips that gives them the feel of a poker chip that’s been properly broken-in within a casino environment.

* Award-winning Colors and Inlay Design! Award-winning design by William R. Coughlan.

* 100% Authentic Casino Chips - Same clay chips, same manufacturer, as those used in numerous popular Las Vegas casinos including the prestigious Aladdin.

* Exclusive mold - This chip line uses Sidepot Gaming Company's highly touted throwback mold design, the Cigar & Snifter mold.

* Casino-style edge spot progression - The edge spot configuration gets more and more complicated as the denomination of the chip gets higher, just like clay chips do in many of Las Vegas' most prestigous casinos (it makes it easier to differentiate them when in racks).

* 9 Denominations – Choose from 25 cent to $5000 denominations, plus a flexible NCV (No cash value) chip.

* Textured cross-hatched inlay surface - Not flat and lifeless just because it’s easier to make.

In addition, just so you know what the chips we are talking about look like, here is a picture showing the protege line:

Now that we have the basics out of the way, we can sum up how we liked these chips in two simple sections, the design, and the feel. With poker chips, these two things encompass pretty much every aspect of a chip, and through these two major categories, you can understand just what a chip is all about. Here's how the Protege did:

Design
The first thing you notice about these chips is their exquisite design.

The chips themselves are made of an excellent color scheme, that is vibrant, but not the the point of being irritating. Each color hue has been toned down a tad, so that prolonged exposure to them is a gratifying experience, and not a reason to contact your eye doctor. We are especially fond of the soft violet chosen for the $500 chip. Its match with the orange edge spot is fantastic, and the classic black of the $100 looks great alongside it. Our only complaint is that the $1 chip's titanium white edge spot seems a little too bright for the rest of the set.

The punch image on these chips is a brandy snifter with a cigar. To be honest with you, we think that the punch on chips is the least interesting feature of them. Not these chips per se, but all chips. Its a nice detail to be sure, but when you work with chips, you notice the color, the design, and the general feel of the chip far before you notice the punch design. Its as if, after playing with chips for a few hours, you will pick one up and say.. "oh.. look.. it also has a nice punch design". Having said that disclaimer, the choice of a snifter and cigar is pretty cool. Its got that touch of debauchery in it, while still remaining classy. Which as it turns out, is just what we like in our poker.

Besides the color choice, what we thought really stood out was the design of the faces themselves. The choice of light lines with elegant curves, and a classy looking font led credence to these chips feeling like they were the top of the line. The varying designs around the edge of the faces as well as the watermarking behind them, adds another dimension, and depth to what is often a forgotten aspect of a chip.

All in all, the design is elegant, professional, and even a little bit playful. It is a design that draws your eye, and then your eye thanks you for it.

The Feel
After you have stared the chips over, you next have to evaluate the feel of the chip. Looks are all fine and well, but if the chip won't hold up to extended play, than they aren't worth the clay they are printed on.

We are happy to report that as with the design, these chips have the feel of top quality chips. To being with, its not just marketing hype, you really can notice the smoother feel of the chip. It doesn't have that completely sharp corner that most new clay chips come with. The chips don't feel "old" but they do feel broken in a bit. They will still need some more breaking in to get that "perfect feel", but its definitely an improvement over the standard chip. The main surface itself has just enough ridging and whatnot to give it a little pleasant tactile sensation, and to keep the chips from shooting out of your hand when performing your favorite trick.

The weight of the chip is just right. These feel like great chips from a top tier casino. They make that pleasant clink sound when you stack them and play with them, and they have definitely got that heft to them when you slide a stack into the pot.

Conclusion
All in all, these chips are what they say they are, a top tier clay poker chip. The design is beautiful, and near faultless, and the feel is just right for a quality game. The price tag is high, but if you are looking for a high end chip, you get what you pay for. We'd definitely recommend the Protege line for those looking to wow their guests, and even for the collector. One other thing we would note is that you can try the chips yourself, by picking up a 10 chip sample. Considering the cost of a full 500 chip investment, this is a very wise decision.

Check out the Protege chips, and other offerings at Sidepot

June 4, 2007

Protege Poker Chips From Sidepot: High End Elegance