I bought one of these cards for my mom last Christmas. I like the convenience of it, that it can be used pretty much anywhere like a regular Visa card. My only problem with it was that it had a fee for the inital use, which I thought was ridiculous but I stuck it out. The other problem I had with it was that there was a fee to call and check your balance. So I just made sure my mom kept track of her spending, so she wouldn't have to spend an additional amount to check her balance. It's a great card when you don't know what to get someone!

A gift card is the ultimate way to say, "I couldn't think of anything to get you, so I used my points to get this gift card for you." For guys, that's perfectly fine, but for the lady in your life, you'd better stick with getting a physical item rather than a little plastic card for her. It's a great way to use your points if you just need to convert them to some 'cash' to buy gifts though. One thing they have going for them is that you can choose from a bunch of different card styles, so that's nice if you HAVE to give a gift card.

These cards are great for those who don't have credit cards, or don't want to use their credit cards. They also make great gifts for those who are hard to buy for. I really like that the fee for purchasing these isn't too outrageous ($5). However, calling for a balance inquiry will cost you $1.50, which isn't worth it.

I didn't know what to get my mother last Christmas, so I bought her a Visa gift card from Bank of America. It was a win win situation. She got to choose her own gift, and I didn't have to feel bad if she didn't like my present.