topic Re: Does anyone have a MAGIC JACK? in Community Chat

Does anyone have a MAGIC JACK?

Carolm — Wed, 18 Oct 2017 15:47:44 GMT

I looked to see if this has been discussed and its been several years since somebody asked about Magic Jack. I am thinking about cutting ties with AT&T and I know a couple of people with Magic Jacks. Does anyone here have one, and what can you tell me about it. Are they reliable? Are they difficult to install. Any information would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Re: Does anyone have a MAGIC JACK?

Pook — Wed, 18 Oct 2017 15:56:26 GMT

Relatives of my SO have it and it is often not reliable and garbled. We have straight talk and just use our WiFi for it for our vacation cottage and have never had any issues with it. It's only $10 monthly.

Re: Does anyone have a MAGIC JACK?

SilleeMee — Wed, 18 Oct 2017 16:21:49 GMT

Magic Jack charges an annual fee of around $30 plus you have required FCC fees and taxes every month. I own an Ooma which cost me $89 for the box and they don't charge a fee, I can keep my old number and I pay the FCC fee/taxes of about $5 per month. Ooma's sound quality is excellent and I have never had a problem with it cutting out or getting garbled.

With most, if not all, of these internet phone services you will pay a one-time fee to keep your same land line phone number. Ooma charged me $49 to port my old number. Otherwise a new number will be assigned to you at no additional cost.

Re: Does anyone have a MAGIC JACK?

Carolm — Wed, 18 Oct 2017 18:01:51 GMT

@SilleeMee @Pook Thanks for your responses. I will look into the companies you mentioned. I am concerned about emergency services locating my residence if I switch from a landline, but, I just spent 1-3/4 hours on the phone with AT&T trying to get pricing for an internet/landline bundle (the agent finally quoted me $157 month) and I am so frustrated at this point I may switch to two tin cans and a string. Why has life gotten so complicated? Thanks again.

Re: Does anyone have a MAGIC JACK?

teachergal — Wed, 18 Oct 2017 18:11:14 GMT

We have Magic Jack. You get what you pay for. It works most of the time, however, when it does work, it's a pain. Our friends don't like to call us, so they facebook message us.

Re: Does anyone have a MAGIC JACK?

SilleeMee — Wed, 18 Oct 2017 18:21:31 GMT

If I need to dial 911 with my Ooma service, my address is on file for emergency personnel to see. My address was automatically registered with the emergency services when I activated my Ooma service. The only time I cannot use my Ooma phone is when there is a power outage or if my internet connection has been interrupted. HTH @Carolm

Re: Does anyone have a MAGIC JACK?

carolgeno — Wed, 18 Oct 2017 18:24:22 GMT

I used to have Magic Jack and I was very disappointed. Phone would not always ring when people were calling and also would disconnect calls. I now have Comcast and have no problems at all. I hope this helps.

Re: Does anyone have a MAGIC JACK?

2blonde — Wed, 18 Oct 2017 19:34:32 GMT

@Carolm Just as a point of reference for you.......I have AT&T U-Verse bundled (everything). Here's what I have to pay currently:

TV, U-200 $88.00 (+20 for 2 extra receivers, 3 total)

Phone $30.00 (I think it's 1,000 minutes, which I don't use)

Internet Basic 6 $47.00

With all the fees, the total comes to $210/mo

Re: Does anyone have a MAGIC JACK?

viva923 — Wed, 18 Oct 2017 20:55:33 GMT

oh my gosh, one of the magazines I get and read just did a yah or nay for purchase on t.v. ads.

magic jack was reviewed. it did get a thumbs up but it also got a side review about sometimes people have a odd sound or feed back real bad when using magic jack.

Re: Does anyone have a MAGIC JACK?

Carolm — Wed, 18 Oct 2017 21:32:11 GMT

@2blonde - thanks for your info. I, too, have uverse bundled with my internet, but I've always maintained a separate landline, a POTS line rather than VoiP, because of the issue of emergency services having difficulty locating residences when phone service is either cellphone or internet. So my bill is a little more than yours.

$200 plus a month is getting a little steep for me so I'm considering other options.

Re: Does anyone have a MAGIC JACK?

ColoRed — Wed, 18 Oct 2017 21:56:17 GMT

Yes, I have MJ; Ive had it for about 6yrs. My sister had to talk me into making the change, (she runs a business using Only MJ) I cut the expenses from MaBell at that time. I actually saw $$ stay in my pocket! ) I would highly recommend it! I tried it for the 1st yr just to see if I liked it, which I did, so when my renewal came up I did the 5yr plan which is $100. You cant beat $20/yr for phone service! There are NO monthly charges at all! I rarely get emails from them. The ONLY drawback I see is that sometimes (generally more during the daytime hrs) that it will drop the call after 90 mins. But within a few mins I can call back. I havent noticed Any difference in phone quality at all. I do notice that when answering a call you need to say Hello twice or simply wait a few seconds to begin talking. Not a big deal. I would suggest that you need to sign up for MJ and switch over your current # FIRST, (I think its like an additional $10 to port over # for a ONE time only charge) THEN call your phone comp to cancel service. Btw, I use a modem, not WI-Fi. The installation is super simple, insert device in a USB port follow prompts...done! (there is also a MJ Plus that doesnt tie up a port) Check out UTube to see installations etc.

Re: Does anyone have a MAGIC JACK?

Moonchilde — Wed, 18 Oct 2017 21:57:54 GMT

In my experience, I just don’t think any type of VOIP phone setup will ever have the sound quality of landlines. Even good equipment is at the mercy of the quality of the wifi or cell signal you get where you live.

If I were to do it I’d try Ooma or Verizon. We have Verizon VOIP as our home phone (though not mine, personally) and the call quality is kwap because all signals in our rural wooded area is kwap - cell or wifi (satellite) either one.

People who live in towns, cities, and flat, non-wooded areas take the quality of their signals for granted; for some of the rest of us, it all just sux and there’s literally nothing we can do about it - we have no choices.

Re: Does anyone have a MAGIC JACK?

theBabe — Wed, 18 Oct 2017 22:02:42 GMT

I've had a Magic Jack for at least 4 years and I'm very happy with it. My phone calls are as crystal clear as my old AT&T landline. Yes, I have to pay around $30 a year and I think $11.00 for the 911 feature but it's all billed once a year in May.

I had slow internet when I first got it and it was a little garbled then. I have Xfinity - only 25 Mbps but faster than what I had previously and no problems with being garbled now.

My Magic Jack has only been out once when my cat got near the plugs and the AC adapter came out of the receptacle. It's very reliable.

Re: Does anyone have a MAGIC JACK?

Katcat1 — Wed, 18 Oct 2017 22:08:22 GMT

@Carolm, My friend has Magic Jack and it is a pain in the ____. Wierd noises occur at times, disconnects, it was very disruptive talking with someone that has it. I personally would never buy one. I have Comcast package with TV, phone and Internet. Nothing is cheap anymore so you just go with the flow. I always call in for a deal every 2 years from Comcast.

Re: Does anyone have a MAGIC JACK?

SilleeMee — Wed, 18 Oct 2017 22:17:15 GMT

What I like about my Ooma is there is an option to pay for their 'Premier' service for $10 a month and this gives you call blocking, mobile app, a second number and device integration.

Re: Does anyone have a MAGIC JACK?

Carolm — Thu, 19 Oct 2017 01:14:03 GMT

Lots of good information, ladies. Thanks for responding to my post. I'll have to mull it over and decide what to do.

Re: Does anyone have a MAGIC JACK?

JR88 — Thu, 19 Oct 2017 13:22:15 GMT

Both my parents and my family have the Magic Jack Plus. My family hasn't had any problems with it, but at times my parents do. Since it's a VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) if your internet connection is spotty or not as strong, it will effect your MJ since it's comes through your internet connection.

If we try and call them and the phone isn't working, they both have cell phones so we just call them that way.

We have family in Italy so with MJ we can purchase 1,000 minutes which is about $20. When those minutues run out, we just purchase more (all this is done on line at the MJ website). It's much cheaper then purchasing a international calling card and the 1,000 minutues last a long time for us. Long distance calling is free so that's a big plus for them as we also have family in other states.

For some it might not be that great, but for us and my parents, it works well and we are very happy with it. We have other family members that also have it and they have not had any problems with theirs.

Their phone bill was $45 a month (with very basic features) and did not include any long distance or international calling. All that would be extra. So for them, MJ and the little inconvience it caused at times, it's well worth it for them to have MJ.

Hope this helps.