Going Solo

Advantages: Can't get into debt, lots of shops take it, from 11 with some banks,
Disadvantages: Woolies don't take it!

...The Solo card is a debit card aimed at young people that works like a Switch except you can’t get overdrawn – in other words in debt. It’s a great idea and allows young people to shop through mail-order and on the internet without using their parents credit card. Though some adults also have it if they’re not too hot with money-management! The Solo card is accepted widely and most shops accept it, though it is not accepted as widely as Switch. Woolworth’s don’t take it which seems rather stupid considering many of their customers are young people. Though the Solo is accepted far more than the Visa Electron, which only a small minority of shops seem to take. Solo offers a cashback feature which you can use at all shops taking Solo. Most places won’t charge you, but smaller shops might. I was...

Disillusioned 18.06.2001 · Read review
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Review of Solo

  Flying Solo

Advantages: Almost universally accepted, makes you more financially aware
Disadvantages: Can't write cheques, not a lot really!

...Ah, the sweet smell of financial independence! When I?m older, I?m going to be an internet millionaire; I?ve decided that. Joining Ciao was to be part of the grand plan, but alas .. ah well, I still have my Solo card. ?What? You?re fifteen and you have your own credit card? Now I know you?re entrepreneurial Matt, but this..? Well, almost. You see, Solo shares many of the features of other debit cards such as Switch. The differences are that it?s been adapted for people who may not be eligible for a 'proper' credit card. Typically these groups are the under-18s, those not in employment, and those whose credit history doesn't merit a credit card in the opinion of the banks. So what is Solo? Well, Solo is an offshoot of Switch, the worldwide standard for debit card transactions. Essentially, a Solo card is just like a Switch debit...

mattwood 11.05.2003 (09.07.2003) · Read review
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Review of Solo

Flying Solo

Advantages: No worries about carrying cash
Disadvantages: Many well known stores don't accept them

...it yet. Both my local Sainsbury's and Woolworths don't accept Solo cards and this led to an embarassing situation at the cash tills as I had taken it for granted that they accepted it as they took all other cards. I had to make a mad dash (waddle) to the nearest cash point and return later to pay or and collect my goods. They explained to me in WHSmith (yes, them aswell) that their electronic tills weren't yet updated to take the relatively new Solo (and Electron) cards - great! It also appears to be a problem when I attempt to shop online at Tesco's. I have no problem with their tills when shopping in-store but apparently they use different equipment for the online shopping transactions and this always throws up problems with Solo cards - I've had this explained to me on three separate phone calls on three separate occasions by...

blurbubble 05.04.2001 · Read review
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Review of Solo

ITS A SOLO THING

Advantages: Great advantages and offers
Disadvantages: nothing!

...What is SOLO? SOLO is a debit card for people aged between 11-21. It has been around for quite a few years now, since 1997. I have one of these cards and I think there absolutely brilliant! I'm very impressed and happy with it. My SOLO card is based with my Natwest account but you can get them elsewhere too. I'm only 14 years old and I think its brilliant having my own personal card. Many folk think that we're too young to own our own personal debit card and we deserve too loose our priveledges for mis-using it and getting in debt. (Which happens!) but not all young kids and teenagers are like others are they? I always make sure that I'm NEVER in debt and am always very careful with my account. The thing about this account is that you can get in debt VERY EASILY and people think this is inappropriate to children as young as 11 years...

emu128 29.04.2001 · Read review
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Review of Solo

THAT'S ME SOLO AIGHT

Advantages: Absolute need for teenagers,
Disadvantages: Not sure,

...Hello everyone! You may know me as anytime03! But thats going soon! And me is officially back as 'fromthedarkside' Thanks Ciao! I’m not really that good on the topic of finance, but I am good at finance, which is to do with business. There are many credit cards out there today, but which one to get is a difficult thing, APR, blah blah!! But what about us who are under 18? We don’t need to worry about credit cards until we are 18, but we feel left out, knowing we can’t buy things on credit, or take out lump sums of money from major bank companies. BUT DON’T WORRY, why? Cos SOLO’s the name! The names card, SOLO CARD! (*Puts on Bond music*) Don’t attack me or otherwise I’ll pull out my SOLO card! ## Wait a min! I don’t understand you...

fromthedarkside 10.12.2002 · Read review
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Review of Solo

SOLO - THE ONLY CHOICE FOR YOUNG PEOPLE

Advantages: Accepted almost everywhere, Easy access to money, Beats cash
Disadvantages: Small charge for use abroad, Some places still won't accept it

...I am a student in secondary education, and before setting up my NatWest card-plus account I only had a National Savings Account. However, as time went by I became more and more annoyed at the pathetic service, inaccessible saving and hundreds of other things, so I decided to open a new account, and at the time it seemed as if the (new) solo card would be the thing to go for, as a lot of my mates had one, and they all struggled to think of anything bad about it. So, I strolled along to NatWest, and I now have on of these cards. Solo is a branch of the well known debit card ?Switch,? and it works in a similar way, except that it is meant for under 18s. There are several areas in which I have been particularly pleased with the Solo card, and I shall tell you about these below. One of the main bonuses of the Solo card to me is that it...

Jaxle 12.01.2003 · Read review
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Review of Solo

Dont be forced to switch to solo

Advantages: Stops you going overdrawn
Disadvantages: Nowhere takes it, embarrassing to use

...Do you like what I did with the title? Solo, for all its sins, may look like a switch card. But here the similarities stop. Yes. Im afraid Solo has been invented for all of the naughty boys and girls who cant use Switch properly. How do I know? Well, I was once one of them. I noticed that it is claimed to have been launched in 1997 but Im sure it was around earlier than that. However, if this is the date it claims, it must be right. For those of you that don't know, Switch and Solo are Debit cards. You can buy things from shops that accept Switch cards in the way that you buy things on your credit card. It is a little piece of plastic that comes as part of your current account options from your high street bank. The way it works is thus. You buy something and it is debited to your current account in the bank. Within...

andycharger 06.12.2002 · Read review
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Review of Solo

Let's go SOLO

Advantages: More independance for younger generations, V. Useful
Disadvantages: Not accepted everywhere, but still widely accepted

...SOLO, this is a debit card, launched by the Switch Card Scheme in 1997 (I’ve done my research). I currently have one with Natwest’s Card Plus account aimed at people aged 11-21, so my experiences of SOLO will be tailored towards NatWest, but I’m sure the services offered by the SOLO card are similar all round. SOLO is a debit card. What is good about this is that you can use it to pay for goods at shops, online or over the phone (or anything else you can think of) using this card where it is accepted. The limit with this is you can spend the as much as you want, as long as the money exists in your bank account that is associated with this card. This is a good thing as this card is mainly aimed at the younger generation of people, like I was and still am, who would like to attain some independence on their finances...

robertliu84 22.03.2001 · Read review
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Review of Solo

Solo Card is a must have!

Advantages: Free, accepted most places online, available to get when your 11
Disadvantages: Some shops don't accept it

...::::What is a Solo Card?:::: A Solo Card is a debit card available for teenagers (and adults? I think they get a Switch Card!) and is available from NatWest from the age of 11 and HSBC from the age of 13. Barclays and Halifax also offer a Visa Electron debit card, instead of solo (if your interested...). ::::How much does it cost?:::: The Solo Card is completely free. When you open a CardPlus account with NatWest when your 11 and over (or a "MySavings" account with HSBC when your aged 13). ::::What can i use it for?:::: You can use the Solo Card at LINK cash machines to check your bank account balance and top up your mobile from the cash machine. You can also use it for shopping Online and Instore! Play.com, Amazon.co.uk, MyPix.com just to name a few let you use your solo card to buy from them. And many instore shops like...

AndyGray2k7 29.04.2007 · Read review
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Review of Solo

The Gelert Solo - Stubborn in the best possible manner!

Advantages: Lightweight, Small Pack Size, Durable, Attractive Design
Disadvantages: Small living/ sleeping space; Flysheet not easily secured to inner; Inner-First pitching

...The Gelert Solo is a lightweight, 2-skin tent which is great for cyclists or walkers. It is also good for those campers who enjoy the group camping but not the sleeping in a big tent. You can think of this as a, seperate sleeping space once all the festivities have died down. The inner-first construction can be seen as a disadvantage seeing as the inner is almost completly mesh and would get incredibly wet if you were pitching it in adverse weather conditions. On the otherside of that remark, however, the inner can be used alone in hot climates to keep insects off but a cool breeze blowing through. The outer isn't incredibly easy to attach correctly. It has ribbons to tie to the inner to hold it all up nicely. I personally, have never tied these as they are hard to get to with the flysheet flapping in the wind and are also too short to...

RhysLawson 06.09.2009 · Read review
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Review of Gelert Solo