Cool Usb Toys


USB gadgets as far as the eye can see.

   

MagicJack a review

author Posted by: George on date Oct 10th, 2008 | filed Filed under: VOIP / Phones

I am most times on the go so why get an expensive home phone system when you don’t really use it that much. For a while I used Skype and other VOIP systems but then I ran in to MagicJack.

MagicJack is a VOIP system that lets you make calls in the US and Canada for free OK not completely free but almost. You need to buy a starting kit for 40 dollars. The starter kit contains a USB plug kinda thing (see the picture) and it pays for 1 year in calling to USA and Canada that will cost you 20 dollars a year (so almost free if you use it enough).

The USB plug is you phone system. One side has an USB connector and the other side a plug for a phone.
now when you plug the USB plug in to your Windows or MAC computer the software will start and you can start calling through you own phone that you connect to your MagicJack.

If you use MagicJack on a Windows computer then you can also just use a headset that is connected to your computer. And the Windows software has some other features like a address book.

So what did I think of MagicJack?

First of all MagicJack works great I am using it for more then 4 months now with no real problems calling people. On little problem can arise if like me you live in Canada. MagicJack offers an “local” phone number so that you can receive calls as well. But it does not offer this for Canada so I got an American phone number. And that is where a little problem start. For instance if you call DHL’s free phone nr then the route you to the US DHL instead of the Canadian  one. There are more problems like this so keep that in mind if you get the option English and Spanish instead of English and French then you are probably on a US call center instead of a Canadian one.

Besides that calling in the US and Canada didn’t give me any problems.

That was calling in person. I also use a Telxon scanner for my job and that needs a phone line to send data to head office. MagicJack says in there info online that these kind of things don’t work. But they do ok often you need to retry a couple of times but till now I am able to send my files out when I need to.

Support. Once I needed support because one phonenr did just not work at all while it worked on my cell phone. Support at MagicJack is funny because the service is cheap they don’t offer phone support but they do offer a chat service and then you just chat with someone on you computer. The person that helped me knew what she was doing and was able to locate my problem quickly but it took overnight to get it fixed.

You can also use MagicJack for international calls. To do this you need to buy airtime first and then you can just call international. I call Europe one in a while and pa 2 cents a minute for that. The call quality for international calls is not always good but still better then some other VOIP systems just keep it in mind.

My conclusion is that I will keep using MagicJack it works great for my use and gives me the opertunity to make dirt cheap phone calls. It is a shame that I need a computer to do this but I can live with that.

tag2 Responses to “MagicJack a review”

  1. READ THIS Said,

    It’s nice to see some common sense users of this product for a change. The only issue with this device is IGNORANCE. After reading hundreds of “I love it”, “I hate it” posts, I’ve come to a few conclusions.

    1: Never buy ANY free 30day trial on ANYTHING!!! Get MJ from QVC, Circuit City, Amazon etc… Then you have a hassle free return. ALL 30 DAY FREE TRIAL AND GIVE US YOU’RE CREDIT CARD NUMBER Company’s will set on your money and give you the runaround, duh. Your and every other sucker’s money is letting them make interest off it. They ALL will bite you in the azz with the fine print. DON’T DO IT!

    2: For the people that think the thing that comes out after you press the button on the front of the computer is an automated cup holder, you’re too stupid to use this product. You probably have trouble operating a light switch or flushing the toilet. If you are a 1 on the (1 – 10) Tech Savvy Scale, save us the drudge of reading your negative post and don’t even think about getting this product. It’s way, way, way over your head. Go play with the light switch or something. MJ is a startup company running on a shoestring. It’s $40 dollars! It’s $40 dollars! It’s $40 dollars! It’s $40 dollars! It’s $40 dollars! What do you expect them to do, send a tech to your house? Come on people get real. If you can’t make it work then return it to Circuit City or QVC etc… Oh, you did the 30day free trial thing? DUH… you deserve the hassle. Just don’t bore us with your post.

    3: Paranoid people get up in the morning; check the weather etc… on Internet. Hello! Your ISP tracked what you did and the Weather web cookie and all the other cookies did they’re thing. Picked up your Cell phone and made a call, Hello! Your phone service tracked and logged your call, they also knew you were home because of the built in tracking system. Got in your car and stopped at intersection, got your picture taken by traffic cam. Somebody knows where you were at the time of day. Stopped to get gas, restaurant, shopping swiped your credit card, God only knows how many people got this information on what you bought. Went to work and your employer tracked every keystroke, oh and don’t forget to smile for the candid camera. I looked your name up in the White pages and Goggled Earth your address, WOW! You got a really nice house dude. Maybe I’ll pay you a visit and spy on you. You think MJ gives a rip about the above information? They just want to know local information so they can push you the latest add special from the local pizza place. Unless you live in a cave, get a life because this is your life, you’re just too ignorant to recognize it and all the bitching in the world is not going to change it. Install this on an old PC, stick in the closet, plug in a wireless phone and forget about it. Now it’s out of site and out of mind. Just like all the above listed things we ignore every day.

    4: It’s amazing! Carp computer + slow line + Magic Jack = Magic Jacks fault. You got to love it.
    This is a COMPUTER \ INTERNET device. If you have a slow piece of crap computer loaded with God knows what (because you don’t patch, virus protect and properly maintain your PC.) your going to have PROBLEMS! If your Internet speed is slooooooow, guess what? It’s NOT GOING TO WORK WELL! So the folks that post, “I can’t hear”, “it’s full of static”, “it echoes”, “it sucks”, don’t buy it” and on and on and on. It’s your fault, not Magic Jack. If it wasn’t YOUR fault, we’d ALL be experiencing the same problems you are. So if you’re not willing to deal with YOUR problem, or simply ask people that have it working a few questions to help resolve your problem, then stop posting your ignorance.

    5: This DOSE NOT and SHOULD NOT replace you’re your phone system. Analyze what it can and cannot do for you. If it makes business sense then get it. If not, DON’T slam this product because it doesn’t meet your needs. This device saves me and millions of people like me lots of money.

    6: Read 1 – 5.

  2. Cool Usb Toys » Blog Archive » Call for free on your iPhone with MagicJack Said,

    […] would be great if I could use the WiFi to call with for instance Skype. As you may remember I use MagicJack to make my phone calls through the computer and for less then 20 dollars a year I can call anyone […]

     Add A Comment

trackback Trackback URI | rsscomment Comments RSS

Security question: Time limit is exhausted. Please reload CAPTCHA.