Being next to or away from other players can be an important factor. Smokers may irritate you. You may see somebody you know and thus want to sit next to them. You may see somebody you know and want to leave the casino. I, for one, need to concentrate when I play, and although chatting with a friendly person is fun, it is distracting.
Machines have different speeds.
Some of the newer machines have adjustable speed controls. I like the machines very fast. Most people prefer them slower than that. I check out the screen images. Some are fuzzier than others are.