I am not defending Discover here. They're an ok card to have. I just use it to reap the rewards, pay in full and that's it.
Discover is a bad choice if you're looking for stuff like balance transfer and paying their APR. They charge a lot. They're stingy with their initial credit limits. I only got $3500 when I opened my account two months ago, but I hope that as this card sees continued usage, they will increase it eventually. An experience with their customer service convinced me that they are just as incompetent as most customer services with other banks.
Since this thread is about rejection, here is my uneventful story:
I was actually rejected by Chase for a Freedom. A week later, I applied for Discover and was approved. I was mad at Chase as they rejected me for no real tangible reason (I have a squeaky-clean credit file) but then I realized it's not about rational decisions anyway. It was funny to subsequently read here how several posters with scores way lower than mine and average account age lower than mine and many more recent inquiries had been approved for Chase products with beefy credit limits. I am happy for them, but I still don't understand why Chase wouldn't accept me. While reconing, the rep on the phone told me that she would like to see more usage of my current cards. I push about $1500 to $2000 through them every month. Kind of ironic!
I like the Freedom and the 5% categories with higher caps than Discover, and I might apply for one again in two years or so. Right now, I don't need it. But then, in two years there might be a credit product that appeals more to me than the somewhat boring Chase Freedom.
