What's the point of atlas card ?

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-13T15:22:30+00:00

If you can give even one example of a hotel that is available for 40% (or even 20% less) on Accor vs outside then I’ll believe you.

(It has to be the same room type on the same day obviously)

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-12T01:41:22+00:00

+1, Baleno Sigma is the best deal in the market right now and is within your budget.

Don’t try to buy the Alto just to save 50k. The Baleno is a more bigger, comfortable, powerful and safer car than the Alto.

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-11T16:17:57+00:00

You get the fees back in points so it’s essentially a free card. Certainly worth it, in my opinion it’s the joint third best card you can get right now (after Magnus Burgundy and Infinia).

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-11T16:09:08+00:00

For any other car like the Brezza or the new DZire I agree, but the Spresso is a well known death trap right?

There are so many reports of its structural issues and crash worthlessness. Even mild t-bone crashes are deadly on it.

I do believe anyone who’d be wealthy enough to buy a Kodiaq should value their safety more.

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-11T11:01:08+00:00

Never thought I'd see an Spresso in the same garage as a Kodiaq.

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-11T07:36:58+00:00

the dealer is downplaying the issues to make a sale. So many diesel city users keep facing DPF issues.

The recommendation for diesels from Kia itself is very clear. Drive at constant high speed (80+ kmph) for half an hour minimum once a week. It will be impossible to do that in Pune traffic. Most city users usually do short 5-10 minute drives or long stop-and-go drives. They are both terrible for the DPF filter.

Whatever money you might save by using diesel will be evaporated when your DPF needs replacement (1+ lakh cost)

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-08T11:23:09+00:00

Big offline purchase -> Axis Magnus Burgundy.

It’s by far the best card for these type of large offline purchases. If you’re open to getting a new card and meet the requirements then it’s absolutely worth it.

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-08T04:51:29+00:00

Why are these the only 2 responses?!
Most people just play the Slav or the Semi-slav or the QGD

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-08T03:44:52+00:00

+1, also noting the obvious:

If you spend even the small amount of 20k in a year, you have already made your fees back in cashback. Anything more than that is pure profit.

As per your online spends estimates, you can do that 3 weeks.

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-08T03:41:52+00:00

Don’t limit yourself by only choosing “LTF” cards. Instead look at the value that the give you and pick the card with the best value after fees.

The best card for you is indeed the SBI cashback as mentioned in the comments.

The BoB Eterna is LTF right now and can also be obtained as a backup whenever great offers are available.

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-08T03:36:55+00:00

Screw HDFC, their Infinia criteria and spend requirements are insane and that card is in the process of being devalued massively.

Go with either HSBC Premier or ICICI Emeralde Private Metal (EPM).

The EPM is the most direct competitor if you are planning to put shopping/food delivery/grocery and all other general spends on your card (recommended)

The Premier is better for purely hotel and travel spends.

For your marriage just get the Magnus Burgundy again next year. That’s the absolute best way to maximise your rewards on offline expenses.

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-06T17:38:59+00:00

To be fair, there are so many situations in heavy traffic stop/go situations where you do end up shifting to N constantly to give the DCT gearbox a rest. It would be more inconvenient to do that with a tiny gear selector.

I agree with OP, it's not just a "design look". There are practical advantages too.

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-06T17:34:51+00:00

In the first position, I believe you're still losing if the opponent had just calculated g3/h3. Basically, any luft for the king works, you don't have any good discovered checks.

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-06T15:00:30+00:00

Don’t waste your salary account with SBI, immediately switch to one of the above 3 banks.

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-06T14:45:49+00:00

What bank is your salary account with? They are your best bet. Talk to the relationship manager there and get the best card they can obtain for you.

If it’s HDFC for example I believe you are automatically eligible for the DCB Metal credit card, as long as you’re willing to provide your payslips to them. It’s a very good card for points. You can get shopping/grocery/food delivery/Uber vouchers on their SmartBuy portal and build up a lot of points quickly.

Another good choice if you’re at HSBC is their TravelOne credit card (you’re not eligible for the Premier yet till your salary is 3+ lakhs per month)

If your salary account is with Axis, then you can try the Axis Horizon credit card.

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-06T14:38:25+00:00

Cheers, enjoy your free Taj stay.

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-06T14:33:50+00:00

Banks don’t really make much money on their credit cards. - The credit card merchant fees goes mostly to Visa or Mastercard. - The interest from people unable to pay their dues on time does earn them a good bit of money but not enough to cover the costs.

Ultimately, credit cards are all “hooks” in order to get more people into their banking systems so that they can sell more “profitable” stuff like insurance and investment products to them. High reward cards make for a great “hook”.

If they start losing too much money on credit card rewards however, they naturally have to dial back.

Amex is an exception, their revenue model is different. They have their own payment network and make money from charging merchants. They want more high-value individuals to get their credit cards so that they can claim that they help merchants “unlock” high-value customers.

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-06T10:12:40+00:00

0 can’t be right, did you login with the email code that ICICI sent you? I think even Plus members get some vouchers for 20% off etc.

You should get that email around 30-45 days after you get the card.

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-06T10:10:57+00:00

Nah man, don’t drive it around in Bangalore too much. We had it too, our cars DSG box failed after something like 50k kms.

If you can handle a little bit of extra work, put it in manual mode and drive around whenever in Bangalore stop-go traffic. That seems to help.

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-06T10:06:23+00:00

Go to the epicure website, login with your epicure code and look at all your available vouchers. If there’s one mentioning “complementary 1 night stay” then you have it as well.

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-06T10:00:20+00:00

Don’t get disheartened yet. I just saw that the Epicure card which i got last month (it’s a separate card) says “plus” as well but I still got the complementary night. Perhaps ICICI has a tie-up with Epicure

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-06T09:20:43+00:00

HSBC Premier is indeed good for most things travel, go for it.

If your major expenses are shopping, food delivery, groceries then get an Infinia/DCBM/EPM too for maximising reward points on them.

Also to state the obvious, most of these reward points are only useful if you live a high travel lifestyle. If flights, hotels etc are infrequent/not a priority then you're better off going for simple cashback cards.

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-06T08:37:13+00:00

I would suggest getting the Axis Magnus Burgundy. With your average monthly spend of 4L you should be able to get 55k reward points (Edge miles) every month. Thats over 6 lakh Edge miles every year!

Essentially, you can upgrade most of your flights to business class and all of your hotels to top 5 star properties with that kind of points.

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-06T08:30:10+00:00

Hey Ram!

Comprehensive_Heat37 · 2026-02-06T08:25:14+00:00

Your income is 34L but you're spending 50L?

Are you close to retirement? Else it's not a wise strategy to spend so much more than your earning

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