Fchishti

I heard from my Centurion sales rep that they will offer Centurion members, three designs to choose from, and the designs will be customizable. To be launched Q1 2021. So maybe those placeholders on the card vendor's site are for those new cards.

LondonElite

They don’t seem to be getting much right in that department, first with the cheap rubberised new cards, to now leaving it up to members to customise the design. I hope it doesn’t lead to pictures of pets on cards.

Fchishti

He said it would be slightly customizable, but was not aware of further details. Will post as and when I find out more.

Super Mario

No chance they do that (at least permanently). The AF business is huge. People see "travel credits" and it's a psychological savings that not everyone uses.

But hey, I would like it if they changed it. I have been trying to justify a Platinum for years.

synzero

To be honest I am one of the few who LIKES the fact that the credits and benefits are hard to use. If they weren't hard to use/obscure, they'd have to cut them in value because it would cost too much. Those of us willing to do the legwork get outsized value from these cards, paid for by folks who aren't doing that.

Of course if they make them so hard to use that even with effort you might not be able to use them, that would change the calculus of the cards for me.

cfabar1

Someone earlier mentioned the idea of being able to pay multiple annual fees and then earn higher earning redemption rates based on the membership rewards account, and not based specifically on which card you use.

it kind of reminds me of the old Amex “ZYNC” card, where people could pay for point boosting “packs” I think they were called. Amex eventually got out of that business, and the zync card was not especially attractive for many, but maybe the idea could gain traction.

Super Mario

Call me crazy, but I would rather have $300 in credits for things that I'm already buying vs $400 of trying to align the planets to buy stuff I would never otherwise buy.

cfabar1

I agree... I find many of the Amex credits so difficult to use. In fact, that is one of the reasons why I have not been able to pull the trigger on adding aGold Card to my portfolio.

dayone

I suspect it's more about what Amex wants.

synzero

You're missing the point. The easier they make the credits and perks to use, the less valuable the credits and perks can be. It's simple economics.

The easiest cards to use are straight cash back cards. But those cards don't give you any outsized value precisely because they're so easy. You get 2% back, flat, forever.

The AmEx Plat gives me really nice lounge access (when there isn't a worldwide pandemic going on), great purchase protection and return protection, travel insurance, a concierge service that gives me unusual access to tickets and restaurant reservations, etc. And the effective annual fee for me is very low because of the credits.

But most cardholders don't use all the credits because they are hard to use. If everyone did, there's no way all the other benefits could be as generous as they are. They don't use all the benefits because they don't even know they exist in a lot of cases. Those of us willing to put in the work get the outsized value from this card because most people don't put in the work. AmEx makes a huge amount of money from their annual fees, because they're hard to use.

ajf87

That extra $175 for the Platinum AU covers up to three as well.

notquiteaff

It would be a full time job for me to track all those credits and chat with Amex support to get problems fixed.

(this month my Fi credit posted as streaming again after they got it right last month...)

imnotalawyer

Not really... 1000 / 12 = 83

Is your wireless service more than $83 a month? If yes, you're good.
Are your streaming services more than $83 a month? If yes, you're good. Most services are between $10 and $15 which means somewhere between 5 and 8 services likely gets you over the mark. I will admit that this is probably where you're correct, that it would be a pain in the ... double-checking to ensure all of those are credited 5-8x a month.
Can you order $83 in UberEats per month? This is probably easier for families but not exactly difficult for an individual (~5 - 7 orders per month). Given that this is handled through Uber cash, there's nothing to keep track of on your statement.
Do you spend more than $1,000 in a year in travel? This is probably the easiest considering you can knock this out in a single trip.

notquiteaff

Well, hopefully you realized I was joking. I didn’t mean to create a “full time job” for you to prove me wrong

Realistically, I suspect I would not be interested in a card that makes me prepay $5k to then be reimbursed piecemeal for all these assorted services I may or may not want to use. I don’t know that that is a winning strategy for a Centurion style card in general. I am the kind of card holder who is ultimately more interested in benefits that I cannot (easily) get through other means, such as Centurion Lounge access or loyalty program status (in programs I may only occasionally use). But they are unlikely going to find enough to entice me to fork over $5k (or even $2.5k).

Kacee

Yeah, I'm already past my limit on trying to keep track of credit card benefits and am not the kind of person who views saving $5 or $10 at a pop as worth $1000 upfront. And I don't think that's the kind of consumer Amex really wants for its premium cards.