Been having a look through a few of those sign-up freebies that pop up around the place. Some give you spins, some chuck in a small bit of bonus cash, and some want a promo code while others just add it automatically. If you're only trying to test a site without loading your own money first, they can be handy for that.
The main thing I keep running into is the fine print doing most of the talking. A lot of them look decent at first glance, then you see stuff like pretty rough wagering, tiny max cashout, certain pokies excluded, or the offer expires before you've even had a proper look. Pretty standard, yeah, but still easy to miss if you're just clicking through quick on your lunch break or in the arvo.
For me, the better ones are the simple ones: clear terms, credit lands straight away, not locked to one dusty old game, and the cashout cap isn't ridiculously low. I also reckon it's worth checking whether they make you verify everything before touching any winnings, even if it's only a small amount. Fair enough from their side, but some places make it a bloody chore.
So as a rough review, these offers are decent for testing a casino out and having a stickybeak at the pokies selection, but heaps of them aren't really worth chasing if the conditions are cooked. Keen to hear which ones people have actually had some luck with lately, especially any that were easy to claim and didn't turn into a muck-around at withdrawal time.