AMEX Optima sucks

[sjt]

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@Kinglord wrote:

Does anyone have any experience of being upgraded or CLI on the AMEX Optima?  I have had mine since OCT 18 and have never been offered or approved for a CLI.  It seems the pre-qualify on AMEX website is not working, makes me wonder if the upgrade feature is also not active.

Any Help?

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You have to have the card for a year before you can get a CLI or another card. Optima is a re-entry card. 

[wasCB14]

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@sjt wrote:

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@Kinglord wrote:

Does anyone have any experience of being upgraded or CLI on the AMEX Optima?  I have had mine since OCT 18 and have never been offered or approved for a CLI.  It seems the pre-qualify on AMEX website is not working, makes me wonder if the upgrade feature is also not active.

Any Help?

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You have to have the card for a year before you can get a CLI or another card. Optima is a re-entry card. 

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I assume OP meant Oct 2018 (more than a year ago) and not October 18, 2019. Clarification would be good.

[Anonymous]

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@K-in-Boston wrote:

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@Kinglord wrote:

It seems the pre-qualify on AMEX website is not working

It is.

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@Kinglord wrote:

makes me wonder if the upgrade feature is also not active.

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Upgrades are fine.

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@Kinglord wrote:

Does anyone have any experience of being upgraded or CLI on the AMEX Optima?  I have had mine since OCT 18 and have never been offered or approved for a CLI.

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Definitely not humble bragging 😂😂

[Anonymous]

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@wasCB14 wrote:

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@Aim_High wrote:

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@Watchmann wrote:

AMEX Optima's current configuration is NOT the same as the original Optima of 30 years ago.  Back in that age ... the Optima card was the first  AMEX revolver ... and was offered to Green and Gold cardholders, which is when I got mine.  Have had the AMEX Platinum Optima since 1990 and just got a new one in the mail a couple of months ago.  Very low APR and now a $62,400 CL and Member Since date of 02/80 which is when I got the Gold card.  Good card to have if you need to make a big purchase all at once....have been very happy with it over the years.  No annual fee.

We need to be precise when we describe products, they are NOT all the same.

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+++1 ^ ^ ^ ^  

Ditto. 

I also had the original Optima when it was a PRIME card, not subprime. 

It's been closed for over 15 years though. 

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So what does the Platinum Optima offer in terms of rewards vs. AF?

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There's no rewards with the optima. Amex days you better be happy we're even looking at you again. 

[wasCB14]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@wasCB14 wrote:

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@Aim_High wrote:

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@Watchmann wrote:

AMEX Optima's current configuration is NOT the same as the original Optima of 30 years ago.  Back in that age ... the Optima card was the first  AMEX revolver ... and was offered to Green and Gold cardholders, which is when I got mine.  Have had the AMEX Platinum Optima since 1990 and just got a new one in the mail a couple of months ago.  Very low APR and now a $62,400 CL and Member Since date of 02/80 which is when I got the Gold card.  Good card to have if you need to make a big purchase all at once....have been very happy with it over the years.  No annual fee.

We need to be precise when we describe products, they are NOT all the same.

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+++1 ^ ^ ^ ^  

Ditto. 

I also had the original Optima when it was a PRIME card, not subprime. 

It's been closed for over 15 years though. 

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So what does the Platinum Optima offer in terms of rewards vs. AF?

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There's no rewards with the optima. Amex days you better be happy we're even looking at you again. 

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https://www.americanexpress.com/us/credit-cards/features-benefits/policies/extended-warranty-terms.html

If you look there, you'll see that Optima and Platinum Optima are two different products.

[Revelate]

Maybe worthy of Gas but that silver and blue contrast of the Optima shown in the signature line I find to be one of the more aesthetically pleasing of any Amex cards just sayin'.

If at some point I need the Optima in the future I will take it if available and that has nothing to do with what the card looks like, and everything with getting back in with a major I burned to accelerate building a useful rewards portfolio.

Chase on the other hand would kick me to the curb for at least 8 years if not more and USBank is also more conservative.

[K-in-Boston]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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Definitely not humble bragging 😂😂

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It wasn't meant to brag, just to illustrate that both preapprovals and upgrades were indeed working on the day that OP proposed one or both were broken.  I would never "card shame" anyone, but all of us have to remain able to view our credit profiles and history objectively.  We can't immediately jump to making broad statements like "the website is broken," "Citi is no longer unsecuring cards," or "Synchrony is closing the accounts of all cardholders" based on one person's experience (or even a handful if evidence exists to the contrary).

[longtimelurker]

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@wasCB14 wrote:

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@Aim_High wrote:

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@Watchmann wrote:

AMEX Optima's current configuration is NOT the same as the original Optima of 30 years ago.  Back in that age ... the Optima card was the first  AMEX revolver ... and was offered to Green and Gold cardholders, which is when I got mine.  Have had the AMEX Platinum Optima since 1990 and just got a new one in the mail a couple of months ago.  Very low APR and now a $62,400 CL and Member Since date of 02/80 which is when I got the Gold card.  Good card to have if you need to make a big purchase all at once....have been very happy with it over the years.  No annual fee.

We need to be precise when we describe products, they are NOT all the same.

---

+++1 ^ ^ ^ ^  

Ditto. 

I also had the original Optima when it was a PRIME card, not subprime. 

It's been closed for over 15 years though. 

---

So what does the Platinum Optima offer in terms of rewards vs. AF?

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@wasCB14 wrote:

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@Aim_High wrote:

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@Watchmann wrote:

AMEX Optima's current configuration is NOT the same as the original Optima of 30 years ago.  Back in that age ... the Optima card was the first  AMEX revolver ... and was offered to Green and Gold cardholders, which is when I got mine.  Have had the AMEX Platinum Optima since 1990 and just got a new one in the mail a couple of months ago.  Very low APR and now a $62,400 CL and Member Since date of 02/80 which is when I got the Gold card.  Good card to have if you need to make a big purchase all at once....have been very happy with it over the years.  No annual fee.

We need to be precise when we describe products, they are NOT all the same.

---

+++1 ^ ^ ^ ^  

Ditto. 

I also had the original Optima when it was a PRIME card, not subprime. 

It's been closed for over 15 years though. 

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So what does the Platinum Optima offer in terms of rewards vs. AF?

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From

https://www.financeglobe.com/credit-cards/card-906/

looks like 1 point per $.   MR I assume?

[wasCB14]

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@longtimelurker wrote:

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@wasCB14 wrote:
So what does the Platinum Optima offer in terms of rewards vs. AF?

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From

https://www.financeglobe.com/credit-cards/card-906/

looks like 1 point per $.   MR I assume?

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It's hard to compare APR terms without knowing the rate environment of that old ad, but it looks pretty mediocre as far as rewards and BT terms...not that Amex is much of a BT institution these days.

[Anonymous]

Surely you must be taking about 1918, because Optima Card of this millennium is not a CLI or upgrade-friendly product. Sorry for your disappointment but you will need to apply for another product if you want to move out of the Optima product or grow any further with American Express.