Post by PHONETOOL on Oct 9, 2009 2:19:02 GMT -5
When you buy the Magic Jack the first year of service is free
What is MagicJack and how does it work?
MagicJack is a $40 appliance that's about the size of two USB memory sticks. You plug any analog telephone into one end, and insert the other end into the USB port of a computer with broadband access. After waiting about one minute while the device self-installs, you can make free calls to any phone in the United States and Canada (no matter where in the world you are) — there are no per-minute charges. After the first year, you pay $20 annually for these calls. That's not $20 per month, it's $20 per year.
Los Angeles and Beverly Hills Numbers Are Now Available !
You dial calls using MagicJack's on-screen softphone or the buttons on an ordinary telephone that you plug into the USB device's RJ-11 phone jack.
You'll reportedly be able to use MagicJack's site to change your phone number and even port your own, existing landline phone number (for a fee). Those features, however, are not yet available.
In our tests, the sound quality on MagicJack phone calls was very clear. Windows Secrets editorial director Brian Livingston recently took a MagicJack on a business trip to Florida and reported no problems calling U.S. numbers via a laptop with a hotel Wi-Fi connection.
Other MagicJack features include:
• Free directory assistance using the Free 411
• Free 911 service in the United States (you enter your physical address once, which you can change at any time);
• Free voicemail (even if your computer is off)
• Free call forwarding to your cell phone or any other phone.
Free conference calling www.freemagicconference.com/
If you use Microsoft Outlook, you can also download a plug-in that adds a toolbar to that program for one-click dialing of a selected contact.
MagicJack costs less than other VoIP services
MagicJack is only the latest entry to a growing number of VoIP service providers, two of the most popular being Skype and Vonage.
Perhaps the most similar product to MagicJack is the V-Phone from Vonage. This USB device is the size of a typical flash drive and includes an audio jack for the included cell-style headset (earphones and microphone). Like MagicJack, you plug a V-Phone into a computer with Internet access and, after about 30 seconds of setup, begin calling. You dial out using the on-screen keypad (which is optional in MagicJack). An incoming phone number is included. Like MagicJack, you get voicemail, a call log, and a contact list.
Compared to MagicJack, however, the V-Phone rates are astronomical. Vonage's cheapest billing plan costs $180 USD per year for 500 minutes per month. Unlimited calling is available for residential users for $300 per year, while businesses pay $420 per year. The fees include all calls to the U.S., Canada, and a few European countries.
Skype, on the other hand, does not include any hardware. It's free software that you download and install on your computer. The software includes instant messaging and file transfers, but to make VoIP phone calls, you'll also need a Skype-compatible headset.
Skype charges $30 a year for unlimited outgoing (SkypeOut) calls to the U.S. and Canada, plus just over 2 cents a minute for calls to 30 selected countries, more to others.
To get a number for incoming calls, the SkypeIn service costs $18 for three months or $60 per year, a price that includes voicemail and call forwarding. (You can also buy up to 10 phone numbers using most U.S. area codes, as well as those from some other countries.) By contrast, if you have MagicJack service, incoming calls are free.
Is MagicJack too good to be true?
With rates as low as those offered by MagicJack, how likely is it the service will survive in the long haul? That's an open question, even for telecom experts, some of whom don't expect any VoIP service to last for long. But MagicJack's business model does offer some advantages that aren't found in its competitors.
MagicJack differs from companies like Vonage and Skype, who buy their connection services from telecom businesses known as Competitive Local Exchange Carriers (CLECs) and other names.
MagicJack's parent company, YMax — founded by telecom veteran Dan Borislow — is itself a CLEC that's certified in 49 U.S. states (soon to be 50). Because the company owns much of its own switching and gateway hardware, YMax can make money by giving out phone numbers and leasing the lines it owns to other VoIP and telecommunications providers.
This infrastructure also gives the company more control over voice quality, asserts MagicJack marketer Don Bruns in a recent issue of TelephonyOnline. Founder Borislow echoes this point in a Broadband Reports article.
If you are looking to buy the Magic Jack check out Amazon and Remember to Buy It from the The BTBC Store Where it can found as low as $29.89 + $499 shipping in the us
For members that have questions about the Magic Jack post your questions in this thread and I will be happy to answer them.