Does it work….YES! However, this is what I have found out:
On a Windows computer you get all the features; caller id, call waiting, better “control panel” software on your computer.
On a Mac computer you do not get all the features. However, you do still get outstanding phone service.
Cons:
Computer has to be running 24/7 for phone service
All features don’t work if you are using it on a Mac
Pros:
1st year is $50 a year, each year after that is $20…common….that is cheap!!!!
Quality of service has been better than expected.
Customer service department has answered and helped me and the experience was great.
I get to cancel my $30 a month phone bill!!!
Conclusion, I think this product is great. So much that I ordered a second one, that will be going to Africa with me. I have already recommended this to my friends and family. With the way the economy is going right now, every penny counts!
Their website seems to imply that I would need to first plug it into a PC is this true or now? Will it work right out of the box on my Mac?
I’m happy with calls to the US and Canada – it’s really clear. However, I paid my $10 for prepaid international calls, and can’t reach my numbers in Mexico. Also, the recording tells me I have 30 minutes, if you do the math that’s “not good” @ .02 per minute. There is no way to contact Magic Jack support, which is also “not good.” I’ll continue to play with it and see what happens. Any suggestions?
I have not dealt with the international calling yet. There has really been no need. As far as Magic Jack’s customer service, the couple of times that I needed to contact them I was able to with no problems, and they were very helpful.
“Most users that are having “trouble” with their magicJack® dongel are usually having connection problems with their computer’s USB ports and its power supply to those ports!”
This is the best telephone service that I have EVER used!
This service ONLY costs $19.95 per year!
Don’t believe any of the BAD PRESS you may hear about the service. I discovered what the “technical” problem was, because it actually happened to me. I was having audio and connection problems until I solved the technical problem of my computer’s USB bus drawing over 500 mA, actually 580 mA, with everything plugged into the bus.
My eMachine computer, Model T2882, only has a 250 Watt power supply and that was working at its limits with all the USB devices that I had plugged into the machine were demanding current. The attached article is how I solved the problem for less than $20.00!
http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dg4hrs67_457n5689dj
Magic Jack was so nice and useful equipment to the people who wants to use it.
It has many features to working very recently well. But we know that some people wants another equipment to recognize their product.
I love Magic Jack so muxh. I enjoy it because it’s nice to handle.
Magic Jack has been working very well recently.
I did some reading on various sites for comments on MJ. Both pro’s and con’s were evident, but on the whole it’s worth trying. From my vicarious experiences from these comments, I concluded you need to have DSL broadband hooked up to your computer, which I do. If you don’t, MJ is practically useless. The only downside is that you need to have your computer on 24/7 to receive calls. My computer has a temperature cut-off switch when it overheats or has been on too long. As for technical support, I understand you can’t dial direct but have to use their live-talk connection at the bottom of their website, which is okay by me.
I have one last comment: sorry. I read that if you’re a subscriber of AT&T, MJ won’t work either because of some blockage AT%T uses. I use Embarq so it should be okay.
I am having a problem with the phone calls that I make,I can call someone and then the sound is coming from my computer speakers instead of my phone and then I have to use the mouse to hang up!
Sorry ,plus the other person can not hear me at all
Renee,
In the “File menu” of MagicJack, there should be a place you can get to the “preferences” or “properties”, make sure for the device you have Telephone selected. You probably have Headset/Other selected and that is why you are having the issues you are having. Now, I am on a Mac and these settings are under “preferences”. I hope this helps.
well i live in toronto canada i just find out about magic jack and i would like to know if if i buy i can have a canadian phone number because i use to live in USA and it really price when it comes to call friends and familia
thnks
V
I bought a Magic Jack to experience the savings and the new technology. I have a bit of a older computer with USB-1 ports. I connected my Magic Jack following all the instructions very carefully, then tried the phone finding myself disappointed. It made calls, but the software would keep disconnecting and recycling itself back up every few minutes. Also the voices I heard on the phone sounded like they were under water sometimes (kinda worbly).
Refusing to say no to this invention, … I took my Magic Jack and a smaller house phone to our local public library and hooked up on one of the public computers. I’ll be damned, the performance left me absolutely speechless. Rock solid stability, crystal clear audio and it wasn’t dropping my calls.
This told me my purchase of the Magic Jack was a good one. The problem I was having at home must have been in my computer.
My next stop was a computer shop where I walked them through my experiences carefully and then asked for their advice. The guy in the computer store asked if I had usb-2 ports on my computer, … I replied “No just usb-1 ports”. He confidently put a small box on the counter top that was labeled usb-2 pci card. He said “From what you just told me, I’m positive this will solve your problem because phones are like a type of media, the usb-2 ports run more than twice as fast as the usb-1 ports. Your usb-1 ports are working, but they are struggling to get the job done. Usb-2 ports won’t struggle to work your Magic Jack”.
I went home and installed my new usb-2 port which cost less than $25.00, … then retried my Magic Jack and telephone. I was floored! It was behaving just as it did in the library. Rock solid stability, crystal clear audio and I never saw it drop another call or senselessly recycle itself ever again.
I am very happy. I’ve been using my Magic Jack for years with no complaints, and pocketing the savings on my telephone activity.
I’m very thankful to whoever invented this device. I also like the lower prices they came out with, … renew at $59.00 for five years. Absolutely sensational!
Joe
Hi,
Can anyone help to understand the logic behind Magic Jack. How can I save on a monthly phone service if I am dependent on a phone service to give me broadband. Do you see what I mean? I have to have a phone line to have have broadband so that Magic jack would work. So how can one save money?
I am confused.Can someone explain to me how this works?
Carmen
The logic behind Magic Jack is to have a cost effective phone solution. It your provider requires you to have phone service with your Internet, then I would drop that provider and find someone else. I have Time Warner Cable, I dropped their phone service, I have my Internet through them, I got my Magic Jack so now I have my home phone. Now you are saying that you have to have a phone line to have broadband Internet, that is not true. I am not using any of my phone lines for my house. I have lived in my home for 5 years and have never used the phone lines. My Internet comes via cable. So it comes from Time Warner Cable from the pole outside, to my house, where I have a cable splitter, then into my office where the cable modem is. It uses the same cabling for your TV.
My recommendation is if you have DSL, get rid of it. Get cable or better yet if you have Verizon in your area and they are offering their FIOS service, get that. I have been waiting years for FIOS to come to my area, and am still waiting. I hope this helps.
I cannot send a fax using the Magic Jack. I am able to receive. Has anyone experienced this problem? If so, let me know how you solved the problem. Thank you
I’ve been using Magic Jack for about 10 days, and I must say that I really like it. I am currently a Vonage customer, and decided to try Magic Jack in order to save money.
Magic Jack was really easy to setup. I encountered a few problems at first, but all issues were resolved once I figured out that only one user at a time can be logged on to the computer being used by Magic Jack. As long as you follow that rule, Magic Jack seems to work like a champ. I plan to cancel my Vonage account and stick with Magic Jack. Doing so will save me about $450 a year.
The only con I see with Magic Jack is that it requires you leave your computer on constantly in order to have continual, uninterrupted phone service. Other than that, I’d say Magic Jack is a big winner in my book.
Will magic jack work with wifi? If not whats the simplest solution.
I am using mine over wifi, so yes, it will.
I would like to get Magic Jack, but I only use Linux. I will be glad when Linux drivers are released for it. I read somewhere that we will have drivers by the end of 2009. I think it is possible to do it now with vmware, but I don’t have a copy of Windows to install in vmware. So, I have to wait for now, but I plan on getting it as soon as it is Linux compatable.
Anything that seems too good to be true,usually is. The system is too buggy and picky.
What do you mean too good to be true? It WORKS. Voice Over IP (VoIP) technology is cheap now. Look at Skype, it is free if you want to call another Skype member, but you will have to pay to make a normal phone call. Is Magic Jack buggy…NO. Is Magic Jack picky…NO. The only issues that I have had is when I tried to use this on Vista. But also understand that hardly any thing works on Vista because Vista is a cruddy operating system. MJ also came out with a fix for that issue. Plus, when you are talking about having something work over the Internet such as MJ, there are so many other issues in hand that can affect things, things that are out of MJ’s control. Things such as a router acting up from an ISP. Anyways, I am extremely happy with my Magic Jack that I only paid $50 for 5 years of phone service. Show me someone else that can beat that!
Hope the MJ works with Windows 7. I recently bought a new HP and it included the “upgrade” when Windows 7 is available. My MJ was shipped today. I’ve used VOIP before and was pretty satisfied with it. If MJ is all it’s cracked up to be, I’ll be another satisfied customer.
I bought a Magic Jack and had problems for a while with spotty calls. There is a tech chat via the MJ web site but it does take a little looking around to find it. I found that they were very keen on solving my issue but really never got it right. Then looking around on site like this I found that if you are using a notebook or laptop as I am that a a/c powered USB hub would fix the issue. I went to office max found one for $20 and so far so good. It seems that the power application in not dedicated for the USB so when the hard-dive or other hardware made demands the USB could suffer a power deficit creating the spotty call issue. I am no IT wiz but thsi seems to work for me. hope this helps anyone else that may be having the same problem.
Hi Joe,
Could you tell me a little bit more about how majick jack worked while you were in Congo, in terms of any technical difficulty that you encountered to get it to work, were the calls very choppy, I know you mentioned that your internet connection was via satellite at arround 128K.
I will be heading to DR Congo soon and i already have a majick jack that i’m using here in Toronto Canada, and which i will take with me for my trip.
I spoke to my contact on site in Congo and he told me that we will have an internet connect via satellite.
So i was wondering if you had any advice for me before taking my majick Jack down there, just to make sure it works, so i that i stay in touch with my family and friends here.
Thanks