magic jack

[LOU924]

Who has magic jack in TV? How is it set it up,and what is your opinion of the
service compared to other providers???
Thanks,

[bestmickey]

Lou, if you use the "search" feature (on top of page) and type in Magic Jack you will find a number of responses to that question.

[cybermuda]

MagicJack has worked well for me for the past year

You can take it outside the USA and make free calls to USA numbers, and you can prepay for international calling at low rates - UK for 2c a minute

Can be slow to boot up, and a bit of a memory hog, but generally worthwhile

[Chopper]

We use Magic Jack on our Apple iMac. It works flawlessly for us and only takes about 5 to 10 seconds to open the application. I leave the computer on 24/7 so it is always available for incoming calls. I only need to re-open the application if I have turned the computer off for some reason.

If someone leaves you a message on Magic Jack, you receive an email from Magic Jack that contains a voice file. It is a great service.

[twalker919]

My Magic Jack works periodically. I have had phone calls that were clear, dropped calls, and sometimes no connections at all. I personally would not recommend it even though the price is right (<$2 a month).

[cybermuda]

Chopper makes a good point - if you don't have MagicJack up and running the whole time (if you turn your computer off overnight) then you don't miss calls, but can access the "recording" when you next check your e-mails.

I find the sound quality to be slightly worse than a landline, but better than Skype. I have not had any dropped calls, but if your internet connection is slow or poor...

[mikeandnancy1112]

We love our Magic Jack. We have cut down on our cell phone minutes considerably.

You can purchase it at Walmart for $39.99 plus a portable phone for about $14.00. The $39.99 includes the Magic Jack and the $20 per year for the first year service. The Magic Jack is a plug-in to a USB port on your computer. The Magic Jack is plugged into your phone. Once you get this done then your computer will start the Magic Jack. Then all you have to do is follow the prompts. Also 411 calls are free. This is the most awesome appliance we have ever purchased and you can't beat the cost.

[GreggB]

This is actually my first post. I have been lurking for a while and getting some very useful info on TV. My wife visited there last October and we have rented a house for 2 weeks in May to see if TV will work for us. I know this may be a strange first post but I have experience with Magicjack so thought I would contribute. We use Magicjack as an emergency backup phone at my job. We bought it several years ago but have since found an alternative that we now use in our home. Nettalk. In my opinion, this is a better alternative as it can plug directly into your router so no need to have any computers on and no annoying popups on your computer. All other features are basically the same as Magicjack. It costs $10 a year more than Magicjack but well worthit IMO.

Anyway, thanks for this website and those that contribute. It is full of great info & I will be posting some questions in the near future.

Gregg

[Chopper]

Voice quality must be dependent on what Internet Service Provider you are using and the connection speed. We have CenturyLink DSL and we also have CenturyLink land line service. In our case, the quality of the voice using Magic Jack is crystal clear and much better than the voice quality over our land line. Maybe we are just lucky that it works so good on our computer.

Sorry to hear that some of you are having poor service. I guess there are a lot of factors that affect the service quality.

[LI SNOWBIRD]

This is actually my first post. I have been lurking for a while and getting some very useful info on TV. My wife visited there last October and we have rented a house for 2 weeks in May to see if TV will work for us. I know this may be a strange first post but I have experience with Magicjack so thought I would contribute. We use Magicjack as an emergency backup phone at my job. We bought it several years ago but have since found an alternative that we now use in our home. Nettalk. In my opinion, this is a better alternative as it can plug directly into your router so no need to have any computers on and no annoying popups on your computer. All other features are basically the same as Magicjack. It costs $10 a year more than Magicjack but well worthit IMO.

Anyway, thanks for this website and those that contribute. It is full of great info & I will be posting some questions in the near future.

Gregg

Welcome to the forum. There are a lot of good people invested here. Lots of good advice and info. Post, lurk, ask, tell whatever you want its welcome.
:welcome:

[Bill-n-Brillo]

Good feedback, gregg - thanks for posting. And welcome to TOTV!!!

Bill

[Shirleevee]

We have been using the MagicJack here for three years. We get excellent reception. In addition to receiving emails when not operating, there is a way to access your calls from outside. We have had some glitches, but not many. Love it..........

[Bryan]

I have had MagicJack for several years and it is OK, especially for the price we pay. I have found voice quality a slight issue on some calls so your service will be a little dependent upon your internet provider. My biggest complaint is that the MagicJack phone number can't be a local phone number. Presently we use a number that shows up as originating in DeLand, FL. We could have opted to use a Brooksville, FL number. That is not a problem for us but can be a hassle for friends calling us as they can't make a local call from their landline to get us. Someday maybe MagicJack will have numbers avaialble from Lady Lake, Leesburg, Belleview, Wildwood, or Ocala (or even The Villages) - but not for now!

[ilvgolf]

What kind of router did you get for Nettalk? I have an aircard but in order to be "online" I have to turn my computer on. Do you need to have your computer on all the time for nettalk to work? Thanks. If you would prefer, you can just send me an email at ilvgolf2004@yahoo.com (the first letter of my e-mail address is an "i". Thanks. Monica Carter

[GreggB]

First, thanks to those welcoming me to the board.

Monica, the type of router is a wired one - mine came from my isp. Nettalk does have the capability of running through your computer via usb just like magicjack and that way I would think it would work with your aircard but your computer would need to be on. The real benefit to nettalk is with traditional wired internet and plugging in directly to the routher via ethernet. Hope I answered your question.

[l2ridehd]

I have Magic Jack at one home and OOMA at the others. When the MJ contract expires I will replace it with OOMA. With OOMA, no computer is needed, voice quality is better, plugs directly into your modem and by using the wireless handsets with a base station, covers the whole home great. Cost is between$200 and $240 one time charge with no recurring fees. Lowest cost is at Costco, highest from the OOMA web site.

[mrdills]

I just look up that Net Talk and that looks like its a better choice over Magic Jack. You don't have to have it connected into the computer and can take it anywhere.

[Zass38]

I have used Magic Jack ... but with the "dongle" that must be plugged in it is somewhat of a pain.

I have had much better luck with Skype, which costs on the order of $1.95/month and covers all of the US. This fee is only required if you want to call any telephone number. It is FREE if you call only other Skype users. Any added feature is that it can use the same number as your Cell phone, so that callers will realize that it is you who is calling. You can also easily set up a picture phone service and video conferencing, i.e. with the entire family on one screen.

Nothing to plug in ... just down load the software and you are ready to use the Internet as your phone service.

[Bob45]

I use the Ooma setup. It has the capability of having 2 phone numbers. I kept my Ohio number that I've had for years and my second number is a local TV number. I bring the system with me when come down for the winter. There are many features available with this system. One is it will link up with Google Voice and ring your cell phone so you can receive you home calls when away. But the feature I like the best is: You can enter numbers you want to be blocked. Those blocked callers get a message that the number has been disconnected. Check it out at: www.ooma.com
I also tried magic jack. It worked OK but I didn't like the fact that the computer had to be left on for it to work.
Bob

[dadspet]

MagicJack has been working real good for us, better than cell service from verizon. Drawback is you need computer on (which I do all the time anyway) but if its not on you get email voice mail. Its a bargain! As a previous post indicated nettalk (?) may be a better option since you don't need the computer just the router but I think its a bit more then magicjack.

[kaydee]

I have magic jack but don't use it. I'd like to sell it if anyone is interested. Paid $40.00. Would like to get $25 for it. It is in perfect condition and I have all of the packaging.

[Bill-n-Brillo]

Best of luck with Magic Jack if you ever have any problems where you need the company's help for resolution. No phone support, only "online chat". Took me FOREVER to try to work through connectivity issues that all pointed to a defective MJ device. I had to track down an e-mail address for someone higher up in the company to get them to send a replacement - the online chat people kept pushing it off on it being something awry on my end. The new/replacement device worked fine.......for a while. I finally gave up on the whole endeavor altogether.

Bill