Whats the dope on Magic jack?

How does less than $3 a month sound? I bought Magic Jack and took it for a year long test run before finally getting rid of my land line. I've had no significant problems for the past 3 of 4 years. Keep in mind that you may have to do a little online research to sort out problems if they arise, because the Magic Jack customer service department is nearly useless. I've also taken it on the road to make phone calls while in hotels - you can make and receive phone calls just as if you were at home if the wi-fi signal is good enough.

Which brings me to the major hurdle: make sure your broadband connection is fast enough - neither dial up nor satellite will do. There's too much latency in a satellite connection - the signal has to go up to a satellite 22,000 miles above the earth and bounce back to earth, and dial up accounts are too slow to carry voice over the internet (VoIP).

Go to an online test provided by Visualware at http://myspeed.visualware.com/ to test your broadband connection for speed, jitter, and packet loss. Indicate your location on the first screen of the test, then pick a nearby test facility in screen 2. Don't start the test shown in screen 3 - instead click on the VoIP link shown on the right side of that screen. Then run the VoIP test; it'll give you a good indication as to how well your internet connection will suffice.

If your broadband is fast enough, Magic Jack should work. If you want to get further into it, you can check out a free iPad / iPod app to allow free calls on you mobile using your Magic Jack account, there's a plugin called MagicFeatures that allows you to selectively block calls (or block any anonymous calls), etc.

Hope this helps.

Magic Jack is a voice-over-IP (computer network) device, similar to Ooma or other VOIP providers.

The idea is that your phone calls go over your home's internet connection instead of the regular phone line to the phone company.

You must have a relatively fast internet connection for VOIP to work, or else your calls will sound chopped up and distorted. If you can do voice chat using something like Skype, then Magic Jack should be OK for you.

You must also have your computer powered on for Magic Jack to operate. Other systems, like Ooma, have equipment that removes this requirement.

Another alternative is to use your cellphone even when you're at home. Some cellphone providers even have a device that allows you to use your regular phone handsets over your cellphone network.

We have a landline at home because we also have DSL on it. The voice services are $25/mo. We do not have long distance, voice mail (we have an answering machine for this), call waiting, caller ID, or any other service on this line. It is only for receiving calls, making (local) calls or sending/receiving FAXes. We use our cellphone for long distance calls.

It's flaky.. I would not consider it a reliable alternative to any other VOIP service. No customer service..