I think it all boils down to what people want and what they will use. Charge cards were around before revolvers. They lost popularity when the ability to split up a charge became available. For the average consumer, it's a no-brainer which they'll use when their car breaks down and they get a $2000 bill from the dealer. Tv broke? Just head over to Best Buy and get a $1500 tv because they have 18 mos of 0% financing. While people are getting hip to the game and you hear them talking about cashback and points, I really don't believe it's deeper than that. At its core, people just want to be able to buy what they want or need and have the convenience of splitting up the payments.
As for Amex's POT, I'm sure they are caving in to client's requests. People who have a green, gold, or platinum know what they can and can't afford to put on those cards. People want to use the cards, but know they can't afford to put a $1500 tv on one when they only bring home $3000 a month.
@Kforce wrote:The disadvantages can be greater than the good.
Amex is not excepted everywhere.
Most charge cards have an AF.
The best cards are for specific spend patterns that don't fit all customers.
My question would be reversed why get a charge card ?
The only answer I see is if it gets you better value with insurance, services or rewards.
For some this is true for many it is not.
I agree with this. I didn't use the benefits of my gold card and didn't use it enough to make the rewards worth it. And other than to earn cash back, I really only use my cards for larger purchases like emergencies.
@Anonymous wrote:
@wasCB14 wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
@wasCB14 wrote:If you had an Amex charge card, how exactly would your experience suffer due to the fact that someone else used POT?
I like being forced to pay in full rather than being able to opt in to a balance carrying feature.
I like traditional AMEX more than the current AMEX.
You said the other day you're carrying a balance at 0% on BBP. If you want to be forced to pay in full, miss a few payments on the account and maybe they'll start demanding you PIF pretty soon!
Except I signed up for the BBP recognizing I may carry a balance if I want to.
So you're unhappy that you wouldn't forced to PIF, but like to carry balances, and have all your others cards available so you can spend on them and not PIF.
I don't see what discipline a charge card is supposed to instill when people allow themselves so many alternative accounts with which to overspend.
@Brian_Earl_Spilner wrote:I think it all boils down to what people want and what they will use. Charge cards were around before revolvers. They lost popularity when the ability to split up a charge became available. For the average consumer, it's a no-brainer which they'll use when their car breaks down and they get a $2000 bill from the dealer. Tv broke? Just head over to Best Buy and get a $1500 tv because they have 18 mos of 0% financing. While people are getting hip to the game and you hear them talking about cashback and points, I really don't believe it's deeper than that. At its core, people just want to be able to buy what they want or need and have the convenience of splitting up the payments.
As for Amex's POT, I'm sure they are caving in to client's requests. People who have a green, gold, or platinum know what they can and can't afford to put on those cards. People want to use the cards, but know they can't afford to put a $1500 tv on one when they only bring home $3000 a month.
I can agree with this if you can secure a 0% APR deal or at least a low single-digit APR (<4%), because then it might make more sense to pay over time instead of draining your cash reserve upfront. But if I'm looking at 10%+ APR? Fuggedaboutit, I'd liquidate my entire savings and then go beg family and friends for help before I carry a balance at those atrocious rates.
@sarge12 wrote:If you ever learned the hard way, you treat credit cards the same as charge cards...PIF...every...single....month! Credit cards can be a convenience, extend warranties, and get you rewards, or they can be a revolving road to ruin!!!
I do indeed treat all my credit cards like charge cards, which is why it got me thinking about this in the first place.
@Anonymous wrote:
@arkaneP.S. One other thing: FICO scoring algorithms have changed as well.
If you pay in full and leave a 0 balance, this makes FICO believe that
you're not using your card so your scores will actually go down. But if
you employ the AZEO method to credit card management and leave
a balance of 8.9% or less on one of your cards, then your scores will
rise over time. Charge cards command a 0 balance each month,
but credit limit cards do not, which is another reason limit cards
are growing in popularity.
I don't think that's right. Leaving a statement balance, letting that report to the CRAs and then PIF each month isn't the same as carrying a balance month to month. You don't need to pay down a charge card to 0 each month before the statement cuts, you still get a "grace period" to pay your entire balance before you're subject to late fees.
@wasCB14 wrote:@arkane wrote:@Brian_Earl_Spilner wrote:I think it all boils down to what people want and what they will use. Charge cards were around before revolvers. They lost popularity when the ability to split up a charge became available. For the average consumer, it's a no-brainer which they'll use when their car breaks down and they get a $2000 bill from the dealer. Tv broke? Just head over to Best Buy and get a $1500 tv because they have 18 mos of 0% financing. While people are getting hip to the game and you hear them talking about cashback and points, I really don't believe it's deeper than that. At its core, people just want to be able to buy what they want or need and have the convenience of splitting up the payments.
As for Amex's POT, I'm sure they are caving in to client's requests. People who have a green, gold, or platinum know what they can and can't afford to put on those cards. People want to use the cards, but know they can't afford to put a $1500 tv on one when they only bring home $3000 a month.
I can agree with this if you can secure a 0% APR deal or at least a low single-digit APR (<4%), because then it might make more sense to pay over time instead of draining your cash reserve upfront. But if I'm looking at 10%+ APR? Fuggedaboutit, I'd liquidate my entire savings and then go beg family and friends for help before I carry a balance at those atrocious rates.
I think it would make more sense to just not spend so much for a television!
You don't understand, I need that 80" 4K TV for my kids! 
If these cards were not popular then Amex wouldn’t offer them. There are many approvals in the approval thread tell us that they are popular. They aren’t for everyone and Amex doesn’t pretend that they are for everyone.
They are my favorite cards.
Personal Cards: Amex Plat | Amex Delta Res | CSR | Citi AA Exec Business Cards: Ink+ | Amex BGR
Well I'd argue if they were truly popular, we'd see more than just Amex and Diners Club offering them, and Amex wouldn't have diversified into the revolving credit market.
Although I suppose a better question would be: why are charge cards not as popular as credit cards?