A penny may not be enough money to buy candy anymore, but some phone cards advertise it is enough to make a call — just be sure to read the fine print.

At the University Book Centre, 206 E. College Ave., a sign sits in front of the entrance that reads "Best Selection of Phone Cards in Town." The store sells six types of phone cards found in a glass case near the register. The cards range from one to five cents per minute sold in $5, $10 and $20 increments.

The most popular card among students is the Tel- Tex USA Card with a rate of 1.7 cents per minute and a 49-cent connection fee, said Bill Klucher, cashier at University Book Centre.

Some students might think phone cards are a sure-fire way to avoid high long-distance phone bills, but conditions such as connection and maintenance fees in the small print tend to tack on unseen dollars to the cost of phone cards.

The Nickel Card, with a 5-cent per minute rate, is one of the cards that carries other fees besides the per-minute charge. Along the bottom of the calling card's poster advertisement, there are conditions such as a maintenance fee of 99 cents that is charged after the first call, a payphone surcharge of 50 cents and a connection fee of 29 cents if used in the United States.

Despite such additional fees, Klucher said customers have not complained.

"Usually if they do (have problems), it's because they haven't used it before or they haven't dialed the number right," he said.

Another downtown store, Metro, 324 E. College Ave., sells two types of calling cards. One card called Penny Power is 1 cent per minute and the other, USA Direct, is 5 cents per minute.

Two years ago, Metro sold phone cards with a rate of 7 1/2 cents per minute, and as time went on, rates eventually became lower, said Amy Falck (senior-journalism), co-manager of Metro.

Both cards have a connection fee of 49 cents. However, Metro workers tell customers about the fee before they purchase the cards, Falck said.

"We had problems in the very beginning with connection fees just because the whole phone card thing was new (to everyone)," she said.

While phone cards promote low long-distance rates, there is not a great difference in costs when compared to long-distance phone companies' rates.

The AT&T One Rate 5 Cents Plan charges customers 5 cents per minute for state-to-state calls with a monthly rate of $7.95. Customers spend the same amount of money using AT&T's 5-cent One Rate Plan and the Nickel Card, if Nickel Card's 99-cent charge for first time use and a 29-cents connection fee for each call is included.

However, some students are not aware of the difference between long distance and calling card rates.

Nicole Sandretto (freshman-division of undergraduate studies) does not rely on either long distance or calling cards because she does not call home often when at school. However, if on vacation, she uses phone cards to keep in touch with her parents.

"No news is good news when I'm at school, but when I'm away they have to hear from me," she said.

While connection fees and rates do not bother Sandretto, she does see one drawback with calling cards.

"It's sometimes a pain to dial all those numbers."