LAS VEGAS - Reporting from the Consumer Electronics show last week, the New York Times highlighted miniature, flexible computers that can act as "smarter" credit cards.

New York-based Dynamics Inc. has been manufacturing cards that assume multiple identities. One version allows users to switch between a checking and savings account (for instance, press a button and the magnetic stripe is configured to charge a purchase to a checking account; press another button and the stripe changes to access a savings account).

Another version is tailored to businesses and offers tighter security safeguards. A "combination" unlocks the computer, displaying the credit card number and a magnetic stripe containing the credit card account??s information. When the card is switched off, the stripe and numbers disappear, preventing fraud if the card is stolen.

"There??s not one card for everyone," said Jeffrey Mullen, CEO of Dynamics Inc. "We are trying to be a technology innovation arm for an industry where that??s never happened."

Each card contains a flexible circuit board, a battery and a programmable magnetic stripe. Mullen said some of the cards are being tested with bank customers, with Citibank offering a version of the technology that allows consumers to choose between paying with credit or rewards points.