Can MagicJack Replace Your Landline? - Comments Page 2

I've used Magic Jack for years. Although the sound quality is not equal to a land line, it is good enough, and I don't think anyone can beat their price.

Two years ago I investigated Magic Jack when I was looking for ways to get rid of my $30/month land line. I didn't want to lose my home phone number, which we'd had for 35 years; it was embedded in too many financial and other accounts, and important calls still sometimes came into it. However, I concluded that we just weren't making enough use of that phone line to even justify the cost of Magic Jack. Virtually all of our phone calls now take place on our cell phones.

So instead I transferred our land-line home phone number to Google Voice (via a circuitous process which I've described before). Now all calls to that home number (95% of which are from telemarketers or scammers) go to voice mail. Google Voice instantly emails my computer and cell phone a notification and transcript (which is fairly understandable). So if it's an important message I can respond quickly.

Google Voice is free and works great. But if I had wanted to also use that home number for outgoing calls, Magic Jack would have been the solution.

Hi, I have had Magic Jack for 5 or 6 years and I swear by it. The above article is correct. I got rid of my landline service and cannot tell the difference between it and Magic Jack. When I purchased mine it was $19.00 a year and you could only use it by plugging it into your pc usb port. Now it can be plugged directly into your modem/router and it works great. As for customer service it leaves a lot to be desired. You end up doing a live chat, and not much gets accomplished. I have only had to use it a couple of times. Also MJ is easy to hook up and install. 5 stars here.

I've had a MagicJack since 2007 and used it for 5 of those years in Kuwait, Iraq and Afghanistan. Sometimes the connection was not as good as other times but all in all it worked like a CHAMP 90% of the time. I would recommend this device to anyone traveling and since I am back in the states now I use it as opposed to a 'MA' Bell line. It is what it advertises...a low cost VOIP that is very user friendly!

The reliability of Magic Jack depends on the reliability of your Internet connection. If your Internet connection and router are stable, your Magic Jack service will be reliable.

If you have to reset your router often, your Magic Jack service will also be unreliable. The few times it has stopped working, I have powered it off and on again, like any other electronic device. Also, if you have a power failure, Magic Jack won't work.

If you are in a situation where you must have a 99.9% reliable phone connection I would recommend POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service).

We have used cell phones as our main phones for years. But for long phone calls, I prefer Magic Jack. Inside our house, Magic Jack gives us better call clarity than our cell phones. We use Magic Jack as a backup for when our cell phone service is acting up or when a cell phone gets lost and we need to call it so the ringing will help us find it.

We have had mixed results with FAXing, but we have gotten it to work. You might also have problems if you have a home security system that works over telephone lines.

I have heard that there was a Magic Jack version that claimed to work over a WiFi connection, rather than with an Ethernet cable. I don't know of anyone who was ever able to use it over WiFi. I have only used a wired connection.

Being 78 years old and on a small fixed pension, I switched from my 55 year excellent but getting expensive Bell land-line service to Comcast VOIP. This was a complete and utter disaster in every possible way. Went next to Vonage, the extreme opposite, he Cadillac of reliable flawless VOIP service. However, Vonage got expensive due to all the taxes and fees it had to pay. So (in spite of all the negatives I had heard) I switched to Magic Jack and have never looked back. Not a 100% perfect service, but is almost perfect and that is good enough for me, considering the huge $ savings. My ADT security alarm does not need a land-line per se, runs on its own independent ADT wireless paging system, so no problem there. In the very rare event of power failure, my internet wifi router keeps running on UPS battery backup, so my Magic Jack phone stays on OK. Seems equal to my former land-line service in every way and at a vastly cheaper $ cost. (Retired telecom engineer)

I've used magic jack for almost 5 years and upgraded to the one that plugs into the router, so I could turn off the computer. The telephone entry system in my condo bldg calls my cell phone since I do not have a land line. It has not been a problem and reaches me wherever I am, even out of state which is pretty funny.

In reading some of the other comments, I see that several people are worried about communications in the event of an emergency. While it's true that a legacy land-line has it's own power which would not be affected by a blackout, the cost of a separate land-line is hard to justify for that contingency alone. Between cell phones and the Internet we already have enough redundancy. If cellular service is interrupted, we can still send messages or make calls (e.g., Skype) over the Internet. Even in a power blackout, the DSL router can be plugged into an uninterruptible power supply or an inverter connected to a car battery, after which a laptop computer (which has its own battery) can communicate through it. If the disaster is bad enough that both cellular service and DSL service are lost, then land-line service is probably just as vulnerable.

As a MagicJack subscriber from close to the begining, her's the dope:
1. The original MJ device only plugged into a USB port and had no other power supply. It put a 'phone screen' on the desk top for making and receiving phone calls. Then came MJPlus.
2. MJP did not plug into the computer, but directly into the router, and yes, it required a separate power input to replace the USB 5v power. It was better and the calls were clearer. Then came MJGO.
3. MJG can function in either of the previous modes, so you can take it with you when you travel. At home plug into the router (power plug required)...on the road plug into the laptop USB connection. And there you are.

The MJP is now offered only with 6 months free as an incentive to go with the MJG. A nice feature they have always had is email notification when you have a voice mail. The email has the mp3 of the message attached, so you can here it on the phone or on the computer and you can save it on the computer if it's important. I've been with MJ so long, I have a 5 digit account number (I think they are up to 8 or 9 digit account numbers now).

The problem is lack of tech support, opnly available by "Chat", which I abhor as I'm a lousy typist. Looking at the sentence structure of the 'Techs', it's obvious they are not English speakers and the only problem I have solved though this 'service' is replacement of a failed power supply (Free if you return the failed device). Oh, if you don't send back the part, they charge for the new one.

I use Magic Jack almost from the day they started it. I am very satisfied with its performance. Always works, which I can't say of the landline.

Yes, you can get rid of your land line, like I did, 2 years ago. Buy the Magic Jack device that does not require a computer. Connect it to your router. Buy a cordless phone system with more than one receiver (I use Uniden). Put the cordless phone base station with base receiver next to the Magic Jack unit and connect it to the Magic Jack unit (does not matter where this is physically located). You can put the other cordless phone(s) anywhere you need it. I ported my "old" phone number to Magic Jack, and used three cordless phones. I have phones conveniently located around the house - without the exorbitant cost of a land line phone, but the convenience of having a phone to order pizza or call anywhere in USA without caring about how long I talk. 5 stars for Magic Jack!

An article about VOIP vice one VOIP provider would be nice. I have the MJ Android app and VOIPO for home service. Happy with both. I do recommend abandoning old analog land lines for a less expensive, more capable, digital VOIP line.

Most reviews on Magic Jack I have read are positive. I opted to try the service a few months back. This is what they don't tell you. Your router must be compatible with their system or it will not work on a consistent basis. I worked with their customer service for 4 days. The problem was never resolved and I then canceled. Worst customer service I have ever experienced. You can never work with the same representative twice and all started from square one with their trouble shooting procedures. Too much redundancy and after an hour of trading eMails (yes eMails)on 2 occasions they just quit communicating and I had to start all over. And, on top of all of this I had to go hat-in-hand back to ATT and get my land line back.

I've had Magic Jack for years. But one thing it does not let you do is call conference lines. So if you're into some internet marketing thing or similar service that has training calls that last an hour or so and are serviced by a long-distance number, you can't call for free on Magic Jack.

I have a friend who moved to Ecuador who has a MJG. Able to do business and keep up with US friends. Occasionally, the connection is bad when we speak. The cost is phenomenal. In a good way.

Problem I Had/have is that with my dsl service from a phone carier i could not get a dry-koop and ie had to get the phone service with my internet meaning i still had to pay for basic phone service. I do have an original magic and even though i spent a lot of time on the phone ,cell phone, with MJ techs i could not get hookrf up with my cable service and windows 7. had to pay for one month service to do that. bottom line...I like the use i had from it but now am not all that happy.

I've had Magic Jack for about two years and it works well for me. I had to pay extra to have my old phone number switched from the phone company and I think I pay every year to keep that number.

I dumped my land line a few years back for cell technology. Which means I do not have a 'phone number' other than the one on my cell. So what do you folks who 'dumped the phone company' use for a phone number? Thanks.

Until you have a spouse with 11 Coronary Stents in his heart ... You will not replace your landline phone.

VOIP phones, will not do 911 and cell phones, while they can do 911 ... It still isn't the same, as with a landline phone, that has your address connected with the landline phone. Should I need an amublance ... I can rest easy, knowing that my 911 will work and they can get to my address as quickly, as possible.

I have had MJ for over 5 years. I sent one to my son who has his own business. He has a two line desk phone in which he uses the MJ for outgoing and therefore his business phone is always available for incoming business calls. I will buy the MJ Plus next.