Originally Posted by
bgriff
I've had the Platinum card for a decade and it doesn't even sit in my wallet -- it sits in my travel bag so I can pull it out when needed to get into an airport lounge, but that's about the only time it sees the light of day outside of pulling it out for the digits when booking an airfare online. It's not a good card for everyday purchases.
Plus if you want a flashy card that looks impressive when you use it at dinner with friends or whatever, I'm not sure that the Platinum card is really it. The design is kind of stodgy, even with the metal card, and so many much-less-premium cards have called themselves "platinum" for so long now ("Visa Platinum" is a mid-level card category) that most people don't realize the Amex Platinum is anything special unless they themselves already have it.
When I first got the CSP 3-4 years ago, people were so impressed with the metal card ... many friends, cashiers and waiters commented on it. With the CSR now, no one does, I think part because the CSR has become insanely common in New York; having a metal card definitely does not make you stand out any more. That said I do think the CSR is a sharper-looking card than the Platinum.
I am with you on the Platinum card. Only comes out in airports although in my case it is pretty much of a free card. Between the airline credit, the uber credit and the Schwab credit I think the value is there solely for lounge access. Last week I needed a quick dinner in MIA and had a perfectly pleasant meal with a couple glasses of wine for free which would have cost me at least 50 bucks at Shulas across the concourse.