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Skype Killer - Magic Jack - $20.00 a year phone service

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I had my home landline ported to Ooma two weeks ago. So far I haven't noticed any difference. I split the line (with the standard splitter that came with the Ooma) and plug it into a four handset base station and to my DishNetwork DVR. The DVR is happy and the phone works fine. I have read that some people have had issues setting up the DVR correctly, but mine just worked.

I will probably end up paying the $60 additional for a year of premium service (normally $100, but I already paid $40 to port my number, which they will apply to the first year of premium) because some of the features are interesting enough to justify trying them out for $5 per month for a year.

 
I have had my MagicJack for over a year now. The first few months for me were pretty rocky with it. When I first got the service, the call quality was excellent. Some people did mention the beeping sounds once in a while (Comcast Voice Customers) while others on the verizon network didn't hear anything.

I had quite a few problems getting it setup but it wasnt all Magicjack's fault. First tried it on a computer that didnt have a clean USB port connection causing the MJ to lose power and turn off. Then the brand new cordless uniden detect6.0 phone i bought has major problems, loses connection from base periodically. It took months to figure these problems out. Problems i initally and incorectly blamed on the MJ.

The only problem i had with the magicjack itself was static over the lines that was corrected by having the device run in the background on the computer it was plugged into. I found that fix on the MagicJack website. With those errors corrected I have been extemely pleased with using this as a home phone. I also have upped the subscription to another 5 years for $55.

After all those problems fix the comcast people dont hear the beeping sounds anymore.
 
Guys, I want to try this but I'm confused. Everyone talks about the $20/year but nobody has mentioned the cost of the actual device. I saw it on TV and at Walgreens for $40. I also see the free trial signup at the Magic Jack site. Does that mean they will send me a Magic Jack device for free? Did you guys pay for your Magic Jacks or are you getting them for free?? 😕
 
Originally posted by: M0RPH
Guys, I want to try this but I'm confused. Everyone talks about the $20/year but nobody has mentioned the cost of the actual device. I saw it on TV and at Walgreens for $40. I also see the free trial signup at the Magic Jack site. Does that mean they will send me a Magic Jack device for free? Did you guys pay for your Magic Jacks or are you getting them for free?? 😕
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$40 covers the device and first year, $20/year after that.

Supposedly they don't bill you for it until you've had it for 30 days, but there are lots of reports of people being billed immediately so ymmv (maybe they just place a hold on your card for that amount, which doesn't show up on credit cards but does on debit). AFAIK no one has had a problem getting a refund if they didn't like it within the first 30 days.
 
I would not buy magicjack. Based on their EULA I returned one I had ordered without opening it. Here is a link that highlights some problems with magicjack's EULA:

http://gadgets.boingboing.net/...icjacks-eula-says.html

I've been using ooma now for a few weeks and while I had to adjust the QoS settings at the beginning - I give it an 'A'.

You pay for the hardware and you never have to pay again. I am paying for their premium service, which is $100 per year. It includes some cool features that make it worth it to me.

I have to say - so far - I've been VERY happy with ooma.
 
Spend $60 a year for skype? Ive had it for over 2 years now and 99.99% of the time my calls work perfectly. Choice of phones, ones that use your usb, or hook to your router. Cheaper then a home line and $40 more per year then MJ, BUT, its got CS, and the service works great.

I have a Linksys CIT20 hooked to my USB port, and have its call forwarding set up to my lan phone, ($5) a month for that as a 2nd line and main line for my oldest for local calls to his friends, but when my pc is off, it willl forward all calls from it, to the home phone, so I dont miss any calls with pc on or not.
 
debating on keeping my skype service, but I just have a usb headset....

I have a cordless phone system from my old house.

Does Skype have anything that I can actually integrate or do I have to buy the "skype" phones ?

If i cant use my existing cordless I may try magic jack... *shrugs*

 
Originally posted by: funboy6942
Spend $60 a year for skype? Ive had it for over 2 years now and 99.99% of the time my calls work perfectly. Choice of phones, ones that use your usb, or hook to your router. Cheaper then a home line and $40 more per year then MJ, BUT, its got CS, and the service works great.
Click to expand...

Can you tell me more about the phones that hook to your router? You can use the phone without the computer being on? Do they work with any router? Are they expensive?
 
You don't need to buy a skype phone. A $40 adapter (provided you have an always-on computer) will do the trick. This allowed me to keep my nice set of Panasonic cordless phones. Main drawback is you have to get used to dialing a *00+10digitphonenumber# for all of your calls. But since I don't have a landline anymore, this is 2nd nature. (and of course you could always program that into your phone too).
 
Originally posted by: fastabc
VOIP works well as long as you have a good internet connection...



In theory, that is another advantage to the Ooma setup. Ooma sits between your modem and your router, so it can suck up all the bandwidth it wants. That means your VOIP will always get first priority over anything else on your network and should allow it to work well on a relatively slow line. Your other network connections may suffer, but the VOIP should stay strong.

I haven't done any testing or read about any testing, so I don't know how they compare in the wild to Skype and Black Jack, which hang off of a computer. I believe Vonage connects the same way as Ooma, so that may be a good comparison.
 
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