Offbeat cards use Austin and Dilbert to stand out in the credit crowd, baby
By Lucy Lazarony • Bankrate.com

Editor's note: In February 2002, NextCard's parent company, NextBank, was closed by Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) was named receiver. The company no longer issues credit cards.

Of all the credit card offers crowding your mailbox, chances are that you'll read these.

One oozes with cool. One sharpens your vision. Another one rewards you for paying down your balance. These card deals are so unconventional and so quirky that they actually stand out from the colossal credit card pack.

It's credit, baby!
It's hard to even look at the Austin Powers Titanium Visa from First USA and keep a straight face. There's Mike Myers decked out in his "Do you wanna shag, baby?" '60s garb, giving his best cheeky, cheesy smile. The card proclaims, "It's titanium, baby!" in bold purple letters against a green and yellow flowered background. Subtle, it is not.

The card also comes in a "groovadelic" design that features a shadowed profile of Austin Powers striking a super-spy pose, a la James Bond. It's set against a swirling psychedelic backdrop.

"It's a cool card," says David Webster, a First USA spokesman. "Our head of marketing carries this card."

The Austin Powers Titanium Visa is targeted to wannabe swingers, males ages 25 to 45. The company doesn't say how it analyzes credit reports to select its swinging demographic target.

Lens card: More sly than spy
The Chase LensCard, which comes with a built-in magnifying lens, is less about being hip and more about being sly.

The card is aimed at aging baby boomers who hate the fact that they can't read the total of a restaurant bill without squinting, holding the bill at arm's length or -- gasp! -- pulling out their reading glasses. The LensCard allows them to pay their bills without signaling to other patrons that they aren't as young as they used to be.

A card for the cubicled
With 3.45 billion credit card offers flooding mailboxes, card issuers are going to extremes to stand out. So far we've found a groovy credit card and an age-defying one. A card for the downtrodden, cubicled masses is coming soon. The Dilbert Visa from NextCard hits the scene in August. The NextCard folks promise the card deal will be as irreverent as the comic strip.

"It's going to be a credit card for the anti-establishment," says Rich Goebel, director of business development at NextCard.

"We're going to make fun of card companies and banking institutions in general."

Like all NextCard credit cards, the Dilbert cardholders can check balances and pay their bills online. Card holders also will have the opportunity to go online and sound off, as Dilbert might, about anything they don't like.

"We're going to give customers the opportunity to tell us when we're doing stupid things," Goebel says.

Evil rate hikes lurk
As entertaining as some of these deals may be, they are, after all, just credit cards. Don't forget to check out such ho-hum features as annual percentage rates, fees and grace periods.

Too busy being a world-class swinger to remember to pay that Austin Powers Visa bill? Beware baby -- Dr. Evil is lurking if you don't behave. Pay late twice during the introductory period and the 2.9 APR jumps to 10.99. Pay late twice in six months and the rate leaps to 19.99 percent.

Off saving the world from evil, and miss two payments in a row? Your interest rate will skyrocket to 22.99 percent. And don't forget about that $29 late fee. Ouch.

The Chase LensCard also wallops those who pay late. Pay late twice in six months and you'll find yourself bumped to "non-preferred pricing," and slammed with an interest rate of 22.74 percent and a $29 late fee.

Magnifying the section detailing the card's interest rates may make it easier to understand. Rates vary between Chase banking customers and credit card-only customers. Interest rates are also slightly lower for those who carry a balance of $2,500 or more.

An unusual reward
With KeySmart credit cards it's just the opposite. The more you pay down your balance, the lower your interest rate goes. That's right, here's one credit card that actually encourages people to pay down their balances.

Take the no-annual fee gold card. People who pay 5 percent or more of their balance each month receive an APR of 11.9 percent. Pay 3 percent to 4.99 percent and receive a 14.9 APR. Pay 0 percent to 2.99 percent and receive a 17.9 APR.

"The more you can afford to pay, the more your rate will go down. It gets adjusted every month," says Mike Kapan, a senior vice president at KeyBank. "It's immediate gratification."

The KeySmart cards, which are available in 17 states, come in standard, gold and platinum. Customers also choose whether they want to pay an annual fee.

Kapan acknowledges that there's nothing flashy or hip about these cards. It's just a plain old, good deal.

"We're not going to say, 'Hey, baby.' "

-- Posted: July 26, 1999